


Sibling Rivalry

by QuinnAbrams



Category: Glee
Genre: Brotherly Bonding, Brotherly Love, Brothers, Family, Gen, Multi, Other, Rivalry, Sibling Rivalry, Step-Brothers, Step-siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:49:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 47,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25733128
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QuinnAbrams/pseuds/QuinnAbrams
Summary: When Sebastian's dad proposes to Artie's mom, the boys quickly go from being show choir rivals to step-brothers. Artie and Sebastian do their best to hide their family life from their teammates, but it's only a matter of time until somebody finds out... *Sebartie FAMILY/FRIENDSHIP* *Season 3* *I do not own Glee or it's characters* *Originally published by me on FanFiction.net*
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> AUTHOR'S NOTE:
> 
> Hi everybody! I'm back (again!) with a new multi-chapter story! As you can tell by the characters, it's definitely a little out of the box! Regardless, I hope you enjoy it and that you please leave me some reviews letting me know your thoughts!
> 
> Quick shoutout to gigundoly who has been waiting very patiently for this story & for being the best person to bounce ideas off of and get ideas from! So very appreciated!
> 
> I originally published this story here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13620674/1/Sibling-Rivalry on 6/19/20, but I wanted to post it here too to reach a bigger audience!
> 
> *I don't own any of the characters that Glee created, only the ones that I have developed for the purpose of this story. All rights for Glee and its characters are owned by Ryan Murphy, Ian Brennan, Brad Falchuk, and FOX.*

**Chapter 1**

_**ARTIE** _

"Best behavior, you got it?" Nancy Abrams said, looking between two of her three kids as she took the chicken out of the oven. "This is the first time that you'll be meeting Harrison, and I want you both to make a good impression. Just put a hold to the fighting for a couple of hours until he's gone, okay?"

"Don't have to worry about me," eighteen-year-old Artie assured her before looking pointedly at his sister as if to say " _I'll quit it if you do_ ,". They weren't terribly close in age, but being two teenagers, they found themselves butting heads quite often.

Fourteen-year-old Ella shrugged and popped a grape from the plate of fruit salad into her mouth.

"I guess," she said. "But why can't you just refer to him as your boyfriend already?! You have been seeing each other for months, and this whole dancing-around-the-point thing is getting exhausting."

"Because we're nearly fifty, Ella. We're too old for such a juvenile term," Nancy reasoned, nervously straightening out the silverware that had already been set on the table.

"Yeah, I guess the term the older generation is using now is 'partner'," Artie pointed out, a smug smile appearing on his face when his mother raised an eyebrow at him for alluding that she's old.

Just then, the doorbell rang and Nancy immediately smoothed her dress down and reminded her kids to use their best manners before going to meet her date at the door.

Artie and Ella took their places at the table as they waited for their mom to return with their dinner guest. Artie was excited to meet the infamous Harrison. He didn't know much about the guy except that he worked as a State's attorney alongside his mom, so it was nice to finally have the chance to get to meet the man he's heard so much about. Artie also felt like he had a duty to ask the tough questions, as he was acting as the man of the house with his older brother off at college.

A moment later, Nancy returned with a tall, well-dressed man by her side. Because he knew her so well, Artie thought that his mother still looked nervous, but her mood was visibly brightened upon Harrison's arrival.

"And these are my younger two. Artie's a Junior at McKinley High, and Ella is in eighth grade at Lima Middle," Nancy said, introducing the kids. "I've told you that my eldest, Griffin, is a sophomore at Ohio State."

Ella stood up and shook the man's hand as Artie unlocked his wheels and maneuvered from behind the table so that he could do the same. Artie took note of the way Harrison lowered his glance for half a second to take in the wheelchair before making eye contact with the teen, smiling, and giving him a firm handshake. Over the years, Artie had made it a game with himself to gauge people's reactions to the chair, and it was quite entertaining. Based on the reaction he had just received from Harrison, he could determine that while the presence of the chair was unexpected and surprising, he wasn't turned away by it. The man had unknowingly passed Artie's vibe check.

"It's nice to finally meet you both. I've heard so much about you. Your mom is very proud," Harrison said, taking his seat at the table and spreading his napkin across his lap.

The dinner began with an expected amount of small talk as the initial awkwardness faded away. Artie subtly studied his mother's boyfriend throughout the meal and concluded that he was polite, very smart, and definitely wealthy. It didn't take long for Artie to notice that Harrison wasn't too different from his own father. Art and Nancy had divorced when Artie was ten, and his dad now lived a bachelor-lifestyle in Akron, about two and a half hours away. Ella and Artie spent weekends with him pretty frequently, and he was definitely the fun parent.

"So, Artie, your mom mentioned you're a Junior?" Harrison asked, turning his attention to the boy sitting across from him.

"Yes, sir, I am," Artie replied, remembering his manners, much to his mother's delight.

"That's great. My own boy's the same age. He goes to Dalton Academy in Westerville," Harrison shared. Artie was all too familiar with Dalton Academy- specifically their a cappella group, The Warblers. "Your mom met him a few weeks ago, and I'm sure you'll meet him soon. He would've come over with me tonight, but he had lacrosse practice."

Artie nodded. Figures that the lawyer's preppy son played lacrosse for his impressionable private school. Artie had definitely been correct about the wealthy assumption.

"Well, I do look forward to meeting him some time," Artie truthfully assured the older man politely.

Harrison smiled at the boy before turning to his sister to ask her how her cheerleading practices were going. As Ella and the man made conversation, Artie decided that he approved of his mother's "partner". Nancy hadn't stopped smiling all night, and Artie loved seeing his mom so happy. She worked her ass off as a single mother to three needy children, and Artie thought that she deserved everything good in the world. He was still waiting for the right moment to pull Harrison aside for some one-on-one guy talk, but as of right now, Artie was a fan.

After dinner was over, Nancy and Ella began clearing the table and washing the dishes. Artie knew that his chance to get a word in with Harrison was now or never.

Artie took a deep breath before unlocking his wheels and making his way towards where the man was standing and offering to help with the cleanup duties.

"Hey, uh, Harrison?" Artie addressed the man, the slight shake in his voice making him sound less confident than he actually was. "I was wondering if you'd come to talk with me in the other room?"

"You got it," Harrison replied with a warm smile, eager to get the chance to talk to the boy as well. What Artie didn't know was that Harrison had a question of his own to ask his girlfriend's son.

Artie spun his chair around and pushed off towards the living room, Harrison following closely behind. When they arrived at their destination, Harrison took a seat on the couch and Artie parked himself across from him, locking his wheels in place.

"So, uh, as the interim eldest son," Artie began, clasping his hands in his lap. "I just wanted to have a little chat with you to make sure your heart- and mind- is in the right place, and whatnot."

Harrison looked slightly caught off-guard by Artie's assertiveness.

"Basically, as the great Ice Cube once rapped, check yourself before you wreck yourself. Don't go breaking my mom's heart or I'll… break your face… or something," Artie felt his face grow hot with embarrassment and knew that the badass façade he was sporting was unconvincing.

Artie's word choice elicited a chuckle from the man, who placed a fatherly hand on Artie's knee, probably unaware that the teenager was lost to sensation in that particular area.

"Well, you don't have to worry about that," Harrison assured him. "I love your mother. I've loved her ever since I laid eyes on her from across the office. She is caring, thoughtful, and quick as a whip. When my wife died about nine years ago, I never thought that I'd find love again. You know, not anything real or true. But the moment I met your mom, everything changed. She's somebody a guy is lucky to fall in love with."

Artie hoped that Harrison couldn't make out the way his eyes were starting to water behind the lenses of his glasses. He could only hope that somebody would love him like that someday. Artie couldn't bring himself to speak, so he just nodded his head to show the man that he approved of his answer.

"Actually, I came here tonight hoping to ask you something as well," Harrison said, making eye contact with the teenager. "As you have already kindly pointed out, you are the man of the house- at least at the moment. I love your mom, Artie, and I wanted to ask your permission to ask your mom to marry me."

Artie felt like somebody had just thrown an ice cold slushie in his face. He instantly got chills and was so stunned that he suddenly couldn't remember how to form a coherent sentence. His mouth was hanging open and he could hear himself making weird blubbering noises as he watched Harrison reach into the interior pocket of his jacket and pull out a small box. He opened it and handed it to Artie. In the box was the biggest and sparkliest engagement ring he had ever seen in his life.

"What do you say, kid?"

Artie's mouth was dry and he still found himself unable to think clearly. He looked back down at the ring before closing the box and handing it back to Harrison. Artie sucked on his lower lip and lifted his eyes to meet those of the man sitting across from him, silently nodding his head in approval.

* * *

_**SEBASTIAN** _

Freshly showered after getting home from his lacrosse practice, Sebastian Smythe grabbed a ceramic bowl from the cabinet before retrieving the box of Frosted Flakes and a jug of milk. He sat down on one of the barstools at the kitchen island and fixed himself dinner just as his father was walking in the house.

"I did it, Seb! I popped the question! She said yes!" Harrison said gleefully as soon as he entered the room.

The news nearly caused Sebastian to spit his mouthful of cereal all over the kitchen in surprise.

"You what?!" Sebastian asked with a shocked look on his face and half-eaten food in his mouth.

"I went to dinner at Nancy's house in Lima tonight to meet her kids and I asked her to marry me!"

"Are you insane?!" Sebastian exclaimed after chewing and swallowing his food. The boy's eyebrows were furrowed in confusion. "I hardly know this woman- I didn't even know she had kids- and now she's going to be my step-mom?!"

The smile still hadn't left Harrison's face, despite his son's concerns that his relationship was moving too quickly.

"Well, lucky for you, I have pictures. Though, I wish you had been there with us tonight to share the special moment," the older man said as he took his iPhone out of his pocket and opened his photo album. "Ella- she's fourteen- showed us old people how to set up one of those self-timer pictures so that the four of us could all be in a photo together."

Harrison handed his phone to his son.

"Her son is your age. I think you'll like him," Harrison said as Sebastian glanced at the photo quickly before doing a bit of a double-take.

Sebastian used his thumbs to zoom in and was appalled by what he saw. There, sitting in a red wheelchair beside his own father, was somebody he _definitely_ recognized and _certainly_ did not expect.

"Her kid is the cripple from the New Directions?!" Sebastian blurted out with a semi-disgusted tone of voice before he was able to stop himself from using the derogatory word. He tried to zoom in further on the picture, hoping that his eyes were deceiving him, but it was to no avail. It was definitely that Artie Abrams kid from McKinley in the photo.

"I don't know what 'New Directions' is, but he's a nice kid," Harrison replied.

 _Of course, he wouldn't know who the New Directions are_ , Sebastian thought. Though he had been accepting and open-minded when his son came out as gay during his Freshman year of high school, Harrison didn't care much for the way his son spent his extra time with The Warblers. He was very supportive when it came to watching Sebastian run back-and-forth on a lacrosse field but just wasn't as enthusiastic about his son's participation in a "twink activity" like show choir.

"Anyways, we're going out to dinner with Nancy and the kids tomorrow night so that you guys can all meet each other," Harrison informed his son. "I expect you to be kind to the boy. He is going to be your step-brother, after all."

Sebastian rolled his eyes before finishing his cereal and retreating to his bedroom for the night. Of course, he was glad that his dad had found somebody who made him so happy (even if it was the mother of a member of their rival team), but it was going to be a tough adjustment family-wise. Sebastian was an only child, and his mother had passed away from cancer when he was eight, so it had always just been him and his dad. They were very close, which is why it shocked Sebastian that he had no clue his dad was even planning to propose.

Making a conscious decision to stop thinking about his dad, for the time being, Sebastian sat down at the desk in his bedroom and opened his laptop and typed Artie's name into the web browser's search engine. He didn't know much about the kid except that he was on wheels and went to public school with cute Blaine and his annoying boyfriend. Sebastian's search was successful in that he learned from The McKinley Muckraker that Artie had student-directed the production of _West Side Story_ that Sebastian and The Warblers had gone to see a few weeks prior. He clicked the "Videos" link, which led him to a YouTube channel filled with many performances by the New Directions. He watched their set from last year's Midwest Regionals competition where they had beaten The Warblers out for the chance to compete at Nationals. Sebastian hadn't been on the team back then, but after watching the video, he couldn't understand how the New Directions had won with some mediocre original songs. Unimpressed, Sebastian clicked on the video of their 2011 Nationals performance. He yawned as they performed another original ballad, but couldn't stop himself from laughing when their leads started making out on stage. The second song was a bit cheesy but much more upbeat. Artie had several solos in the song, and even Sebastian had to admit that he had a killer voice.

Satisfied by his internet stalking for the night, Sebastian closed his laptop and began getting ready for bed. He wondered if Artie was as clueless to the fact that their parents were dating- err, engaged- as he was. Sebastian could only imagine how this was going to go down once The Warblers and New Directions found out. Their rivalry was the tensest it has ever been, and Sebastian was not exactly thrilled about having dinner with the Abrams family tomorrow evening.

He tossed and turned all night trying to push the thought of his new blended family out of his mind with no luck. Frustrated, Sebastian laid on his back in his bed knowing that the upcoming little gathering was sure to be nothing if not uncomfortable.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_**ARTIE** _

Artie's giddiness about his mother's engagement carried on to the next day. He couldn't be more thrilled for his mom and her new beau and was excitedly anticipating the family dinner at Breadstix tonight.

He had a smile on his face as he rolled into the choir room, and it did not go unnoticed.

"Someone's in a good mood today," Tina observed as Artie made his way over to where she and Mike were standing.

Artie shrugged, the smile staying right where it was. Of course, he had texted his best friend as soon as his mom said yes, so Tina definitely knew the reason for his cheery demeanor.

After catching each other up on their school days, Tina and Mike went back to talking about their plans to be counselors at Asian Camp again this coming summer, and Artie turned around in time to see just the guys he was looking for.

"Finn! Kurt! I need to pick your brains about something," Artie said, wheeling over to them as they both entered the room.

Ever the planner, Artie was eager to know everything he possibly could about living in a blended household, and who better to ask than his close friends who had just gone through the same transition the year before?

"Sure thing, dude," Finn replied. "What's up?"

"My mom got engaged to her boyfriend last night, and he has a son that's my age," Artie explained, receiving a happy "Congratulations!" from both of his friends. "I am meeting the kid tonight for the first time, and I want to make a good first impression and everything…" Artie's voice trailed off as he tried to find the right words to convey what he was trying to ask. "I dunno, how did you guys find it adjusting to life as step-brothers?"

Kurt leaned an elbow down on the piano behind him as he gave his answer.

"It was definitely an adjustment, to say the least," Kurt said, remembering the fight he and Finn had had about how they wanted to decorate their shared bedroom. "I would say, just work a lot at the beginning to get to know each other. The transition from strangers to brothers will be much easier if you're friends."

Finn nodded, agreeing with what Kurt had to say.

"I mean, I didn't really have to worry about making a good impression because Kurt over here already thought _very_ highly of me," the taller boy laughed, nudging his brother in the ribs, to which Kurt rolled his eyes. Artie couldn't help but stifle his own laugh- everyone remembered how Kurt had introduced their parents in the first place so that he could get closer to Finn, whom he had a crush on.

"Don't worry about making a good impression, Artie," Kurt said to him, ignoring Finn's previous comment. "You're amazing, anybody would be lucky to be your brother."

Artie blushed at the compliment as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

Just then, Mr. Schue entered the choir room from his adjoining office and told everyone to take their seats. As the three boys headed towards the risers, Finn put a hand on Artie's shoulder.

"Hey, make sure to let us know how it goes tonight," he said sincerely. "Who knows, maybe we can hang out as, like, a step-brother friend group sometime!"

"And let me know if your mom needs any help planning the wedding," Kurt added, taking the seat next to the empty spot where Artie had parked his chair. "I'm good in that department."

Artie nodded to both of them.

"Sounds good," Artie agreed. "Thanks, guys. I knew I could count on you both."

* * *

Later that night, Nancy, Artie, and Ella arrived at Breadstix and they immediately spotted Harrison waving them over from where he was seated at one of the semi-circular booths. Artie could see the back of a teenage boy's head seated next to him, that he assumed was his soon-to-be-step-brother. The Abrams family approached the table, and as they grew closer, Artie could make out the familiar face sitting in a Dalton Academy blazer. Artie's heart sped up as he made eye contact with the boy, who had somewhat of a smirk on his face, letting Artie know that he was not as surprised to see Artie as Artie was to see him.

 _This can not be happening_ , Artie thought to himself as his mother and sister slid into the booth beside the others. Artie's eyes were fixed on the boy's grey-blue ones as he locked the wheels of his chair in place on the empty side of the table.

"Artie and Ella, this is my son Sebastian," Harrison said, completely oblivious to the staring contest currently going down between the boys.

"We've met," Artie said through gritted teeth, breaking eye contact with the Warbler to flash a fake smile at his father. "Sebastian and I are in rival glee clubs."

"Oh my gosh! That's great! It's something that you have in common!" Nancy smiled enthusiastically glancing between the two boys, completely missing why that would be an issue for them.

Beside him, Artie heard Ella stifle a giggle. His fourteen-year-old sister was clearly not as oblivious to the thick tension that was present between Artie and Sebastian as their lovestruck parents were.

Throughout the dinner, Artie tried his best to ignore the fact that the captain of The Warblers was sitting across the table from him, but if looks could kill, Artie would have been dead within the hour. He could feel Sebastian's dagger-like glare on him all night long. Artie put on a gleeful façade in order to make the meal pleasant, for his mother's sake, but judging by the look on Sebastian's face that he didn't bother to cover up, neither boy was too thrilled about this arrangement.

Artie had no idea how he was supposed to tell his friends about this- what would they think? Would they accuse him of fraternizing with the enemy? The stone-cold look of annoyance and superiority remained unscathed on Sebastian's face throughout dinner, but Artie had a feeling that he was wondering the same thing. Surely, neither The Warblers nor the New Directions would approve of this- it's almost like having a mole on the inside observing your every move before reporting back to their own club. This is certainly a recipe for disaster.

Near the end of dinner, Nancy had the idea to create a family group chat. Only seconds after the group message was created, Artie received a separate text from a number he hadn't yet saved in his contacts. He assumed it was Sebastian, and when he looked up at the boy across from him, he avoided his glance.

Artie held his phone in his lap under the table, so that his mother wouldn't scold him for texting during dinner, and opened the message.

**Nobody finds out about this, OK? Nobody.**

Artie immediately typed a text back.

**Fine by me. The fewer people who know I'm affiliated with a Warbler, the better.**

Sebastian's response came almost instantly.

**I'm serious, Hot Wheels. If word gets out, I'll know you talked. So don't.**

It took all of Artie's strength not to roll his eyes and audibly scoff at the text he'd received. This was certainly not what Artie had pictured when he found out he was going to have a step-brother, and if things keep heading in the direction they've been going, it's about to be a long rest of his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

_**ARTIE** _

The thought of having Sebastian as a constant in his life from now on nauseated Artie. Thanks to his anxiety, for the last three days since the family dinner at Breadstix, he was constantly worrying about what the others would think when they found out. Though he and Sebastian had agreed to keep it a secret for as long as they could, they knew that they wouldn't be able to do so forever. Artie thought about only telling one person- Tina- just so that he could get the secret off his chest, but then he thought back to his and Sebastian's agreement. _Nobody_ was to find out about this (especially a blabbermouth like Tina Cohen-Chang) or it would only be a matter of time until everything implodes.

Artie wheeled into the choir room and maneuvered himself into his usual spot in the front row. He was deep in thought, dwelling on this family crisis when Finn pulled a chair over next to him. He spun the plastic chair around and sat down backwards on it beside Artie.

"Hey, dude! How'd that dinner thing go with your new brother?" the gentle giant asked, genuinely interested in his friend's answer. "I meant to ask the other day, but Rachel is totally freaking out about her NYADA application that's due this week, so it slipped my mind."

Artie's thoughts raced a mile a minute- he couldn't say it went well, or his friends would be eager to meet the other boy, and he definitely couldn't say it went horribly without elaborating.

"It was… fine," Artie answered eventually, avoiding eye contact.

Much to his chagrin, Artie was terrible at hiding the way he was feeling. His emotions were always easily expressed on his face, and those close to him could read him like a book.

"Just fine?" Finn pressed on, looking at Artie with his eyebrows raised, knowing that he was hiding something.

"Yup."

Artie's face grew hot as he noticed the look of skepticism and confusion on his friend's face. He had always looked up to Finn as a friend and as a leader, and it hurt his heart to be keeping something like this from him.

Knowing that Artie probably wasn't going to elaborate any more on the situation- at least not right now- Finn shrugged and turned his focus back to zoning out while Rachel ranted from where she was seated on his other side. He made a mental note to keep an eye out for Artie over the next few days because the glum and bland answer was extremely out-of-character for his friend who was usually able to talk your ear off about one thing or another.

* * *

_**SEBASTIAN** _

After Warbler's practice ended late in order to perfect their setlist for their Sectional competition approaching this coming weekend, Sebastian drove roughly an hour back to where he lived with his father in Marion. They moved to Ohio shortly after his mother's death, and even though the drive to and from Dalton could be considered kind of a trek, it was well worth it to attend the prestigious all-boys school with top-notch sports teams and extracurriculars.

It was almost 10:30 PM by the time Sebastian parked his matte black Range Rover in the garage next to his father's Porsche before entering the home and tossing his car keys into the basket in the mud room.

"Hey, Sport!" Harrison greeted his son from the other room, hearing him come inside.

Sebastian followed where the voice was coming from and found his father and Nancy sitting on the couch in the living room watching a movie.

Sebastian entered the room awkwardly, his backpack slung over one shoulder. He gave a nonchalant "Hey," in return, somewhat surprised to see his soon-to-be step-mother at his house so late at night.

"Hey, take a seat. Nancy and I want to talk to you about something," Harrison said, gesturing to the loveseat across from him with the hand that wasn't draped around his fiancée's shoulders.

Sebastian dropped his bag at his feet before lowering himself into said-loveseat with a confused look on his face.

"Nancy and I were discussing it, and we've come to the conclusion that we're going to move in together," Harrison said casually, unknowingly dropping a bomb on his son.

Sebastian raised his eyebrows in surprise. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting the adults to tell him, but this certainly wasn't it.

"I've invited you and your dad to move into my house in Lima," Nancy explained. "Our home has already been retrofitted to be handicap accessible for Artie's needs, and it would be such a burden to expect you both to renovate your house to be as accommodating. Plus, we have an extra bedroom upstairs that you can move into!"

Sebastian began to feel a little lightheaded about the whole situation. This was all moving much too fast for his liking. He understood that people his father and Nancy's age didn't want to waste a second once they found each other because life is too short and they need to savor every moment, blah, blah, blah… But it hasn't even been a full week since his father had proposed, and now, Sebastian was expected to pack up all of his belongings and move into a stranger's house that was in a different town an hour away?!

He could feel the two sets of eyes staring at him waiting for his thoughts on the idea. If he was being honest, the plan didn't sit well with him at all. Of course, Sebastian knew that this was what his father wanted, and he did want to make him happy (at home, Sebastian wasn't quite as entitled and outspoken as he acted around his peers). He then made the executive decision to voice his concerns.

"Would I still be able to go to Dalton?" Sebastian asked, a bit of nervousness present in his voice.

Harrison nodded.

"Yes, of course. Granted, the drive from home to school will be even longer than it already is, but that was one of our deciding factors when we were discussing whose house we were going to move into," Harrison explained to his son. "Since you go to private school, it would be easier for us to move because you would be able to remain in your same classes. If the Abramses were moving here, not only would we have to do many accommodations to the house, but Artie and Ella would also have to switch schools. It wouldn't really be fair to them."

Sebastian nodded slowly as he contemplated the idea. He admittedly wasn't the biggest fan of Artie, but he put himself in the boy's place for a moment and imagined how he would feel if he had to leave his friends and teammates behind mid-season. That would really suck. Sebastian still wasn't too excited about the fact that he was going to have to leave his independent father-son lifestyle behind to transition into a family dynamic, but sometimes sacrifices needed to be made.

"Sounds great," he said reluctantly through gritted teeth with a fake smile plastered on his face. Both adults were too giddy to notice his solemn demeanor as he left the room and headed upstairs to what was still his bedroom for the time being.

It didn't occur to him until later on how much more difficult it was going to be for him and Artie to keep their little secret if they were living under the same roof. This meant that neither of them could have friends coming over to the house for fear of them spotting the other, a greater chance of accidentally slipping up and mentioning it in casual conversation, and it was going to be _much_ more difficult for Sebastian to keep himself from befriending the enemy. Sebastian couldn't help but groan at the thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_**ARTIE** _

The following Sunday, Harrison and Sebastian moved into the Abrams' home in Lima. Since the house was already fully furnished, the Smythes were able to leave most of their furniture and belongings behind in Marion, as Harrison said that they were going to worry about clearing out the house once they put it on the market. They rented a U-Haul and stocked it up with all of their clothes, and some pieces of decor they would be taking with them and drove it an hour west to Lima.

Artie's twenty-year-old brother Griffin had come home from Ohio State for the weekend to help with the move-in process and to formally meet Harrison and Sebastian. Griffin Abrams was the epitome of the ideal older brother: he was tall, had curly brown hair, a sprinkle of freckles across his cheeks, and Artie's same piercing blue eyes. He graduated from McKinley in the top 10 of his class, all the while playing both football and basketball. Even though he didn't play any sports in college, he still had his muscular build and athletic stamina. He and Artie had always been surprisingly close, despite their differing interests and social statuses at the school, and Griffin did his best to look out for him. He had set the bar pretty high, as far as brothers go, and Artie always looked forward to spending time with him when he was home from college.

Prior to the Smythes' arrival, Artie had filled Griffin in on the show choir drama and Sebastian's less-than-stellar reputation.

"He's cocky and just plain rude," Artie had said. "As the captain of The Warblers, he's made our lives as New Directions a living hell, and now he's going to be the same way at home, I just know it!"

Griffin listened intently to what Artie had to say, and he could tell that his brother was not a fan of their new sibling.

"Well, who knows? Maybe he's different outside of a competitive setting," Griffin suggested, to which Artie shook his head. "Just hear me out, Art- maybe he's not who you think he is. We've all got things we hide, right?"

Artie raised an eyebrow and frowned at his older brother, knowing he had gotten across just the message he was intending to convey when Griffin held up his hands in surrender.

"Or maybe he's exactly who you think he is. A cocky, rude homewrecker."

Regardless of his brother's preliminary opinion on the boy, Griffin intended to go into this new relationship with an open mind, while also keeping Artie's words close to his heart, knowing that he is a great judge of character.

It wasn't long before the U-Haul pulled into the driveway of the Abrams' charming two-story home with grey wood shingle siding. Sebastian, Harrison, and Griffin unloaded the heavy furniture pieces and carried them into the house, while Artie sat to the side feeling wildly unhelpful. He busied himself by setting several moving boxes on his lap at a time and wheeling them into the house, but he couldn't help but wish he could've helped with the more "manly" tasks.

Sebastian would be moving into what was once Artie's bedroom what feels like another lifetime ago. After his accident, Artie wouldn't be able to get upstairs easily anymore, so when his parents modified their home to be more accessible, they also had the den converted into Artie's bedroom and added an adjacent bathroom. The thought of Sebastian living in his old bedroom made Artie feel a little bit queasy, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Artie and Sebastian spent the day successfully avoiding one another- if one boy entered a room, the other would promptly exit. They couldn't keep living like this forever, could they?

Just the day before, Sebastian and The Warblers had been victorious at their Sectionals competition, so they were well on their way to preparing for Regionals. The New Directions, however, had still yet to win their Sectionals in order to qualify for Regionals, and they were up against McKinley's newest team- The Troubletones- led by Shelby Corcoran, the former coach of Vocal Adrenaline. Some of their best performers had left the New Directions to go join her team, and Rachel was currently suspended from competing due to some interference she had with the student election ballot boxes. The point is- the odds were against them, so they needed to work even harder to come out on top.

At some point during the week, somebody had suggested that they do a Jackson medley- "ABC" by The Jackson 5, "Control" by Janet Jackson, and "Man in the Mirror" by Michael Jackson. The group had agreed unanimously, and they were all eager to show off their setlist to the judges and audience. Artie had a feeling that it would be a real crowd pleaser, and he was anxiously anticipating the competition.

* * *

_**SEBASTIAN** _

Sebastian and a few of his Warblers teammates settled into their seats in the auditorium at William McKinley High School as they waited for the Western Ohio Show Choir Sectionals competition to commence. Sebastian had heard through the online show choir blogs that the theme for the competition was "classics", which was pretty broad, so he was excited to see how each team would interpret it.

After the unqualified panel of judges was introduced, the first team took the stage. First up were The Unitards from God-knows-where, Ohio. They sang "Buenos Aires" from the Broadway musical _Evita_. Though he couldn't deny the lead singer's talent, Sebastian found the decision to sing show tunes in competition cliché and predictable. Yawn.

Next up was The Troubletones. From what he had heard, they were a new group formed out of a bunch of girls who ditched the New Directions after they felt like they weren't being given the spotlight they deserved. Sebastian thought that their actions didn't make them very good team players, and he wasn't very moved by their feminist anthem mash-up of Destiny's Child's "Survivor" and Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive".

 _As long as the New Directions don't come out here and totally suck, they've got it in the bag,_ Sebastian thought to himself. _Because the trophy is certainly not going home with either of the other teams, as they seem to have missed the theme completely._

Not long after, it was finally time for the New Directions to perform. The emcee announced them to the audience, and, despite the darkness of the stage, Sebastian could see the silhouettes of the team as they took their places. As the lights turned on, and the New Directions started singing their upbeat song selections, Sebastian couldn't help but stand up and clap along with the rest of the crowd. He could tell that the New Directions were a really tight-knit group just by the way they interacted with one another on stage. He was surprised to find himself rooting for the New Directions to win- not only because he thought it would be fun to have a sibling showdown with Artie at Regionals- but because they were really talented and would put up some good competition for The Warblers.

As the first song drew to a close, the lights dimmed again before a single spotlight shone down on a blonde girl who effortlessly commanded the audience's attention with the opening monologue of Janet Jackson's "Control", sending chills up the spines of everyone in attendance. When the rest of the song started, the talented and handsome Blaine Anderson captivated the stage. For the first time ever, Sebastian's attention was not focused solely on the attractive former Warbler- this time his eyes were drawn to Artie. He noticed the way that he was able to easily adapt the choreography into something he was able to do from his chair. Sebastian was not only impressed by the way his soon-to-be step-brother still seemed to be able to confidently strut while sitting in a wheelchair, but his solos during the second number were also quite admirable.

In the New Directions' third and final song, "Man in the Mirror", Artie once again had a few noteworthy solo lines, but it was his runs and background vocals that were to die for. If you weren't listening for his voice specifically, it would be easy to miss, but Artie's expertise didn't go unnoticed by an awestruck Sebastian.

When their performance ended, Sebastian stood up and cheered. He and Artie still weren't on the greatest of terms- they had barely uttered five complete sentences to each other since Sebastian and his father and moved to Lima- but there was no denying that Artie was talented and better than the majority of the New Directions. If they were to advance, they posed a real threat to The Warblers going into the next competition.

* * *

Sebastian didn't bother to knock before entering Artie's bedroom, located conveniently on the first floor of the house.

Artie, fresh off his Sectionals victory, was sitting on the edge of his bed having just changed out of his white competition suit and into an Ohio State t-shirt and a pair of joggers. He nearly jumped in surprise when Sebastian barged in.

Seeing it was him, Artie rolled his eyes before transferring back to his chair as Sebastian looked on. It was his first time seeing how swiftly Artie was able to move himself back into the chair with no assistance, and Sebastian must've unknowingly had a look of awe on his face because Artie took notice of it.

"What do you want, Smythe?" Artie asked with a tone of annoyance in his voice as he put his competition suit in his lap and rolled himself over to his closet so that he could hang it up.

"I just wanted to come to congratulate you on the New Directions win," Sebastian said, receiving a look of suspicion from the shorter boy. "I'll give it to you, Hot Wheels, you've got one hell of a stage presence."

"Yeah, well, people are already staring, might as well give them a show," Artie replied nonchalantly, feeling somewhat violated at the fact that Sebastian was now sitting on his bed in the spot he had vacated just moments before.

"Is that all?" Artie asked after a moment of silence, crossing his arms and looking at Sebastian expectantly.

"I also wanted to say that I hope you've enjoyed your season because it'll all be over in a month when we wipe the floor with you guys at Regionals," Sebastian stated with a cocky smile before standing up and exiting the room, closing the door behind him and leaving Artie alone with furrowed brows and a frown on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was my favorite chapter so far! I loved getting to write a "nice" Sebastian, even if it was just for a moment!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

_**ARTIE** _

Sebastian and Ella had really hit it off, much to Artie's chagrin. They had similar snarky, sassy personalities paired with the same dry, slightly tone-deaf sense of humor. And with Griffin back at school, Artie felt like the black sheep of the siblings.

He and Sebastian were still not exactly interacting, but the past couple of weeks had brought on slight improvements.

On Tuesday morning, Artie had asked Sebastian to pass him the orange juice as they sat at opposite ends of the kitchen table, simultaneously eating their breakfasts.

On Wednesday night, Ella and Sebastian had dug out the old Dance Dance Revolution game for old time's sake. Artie heard their giggles and joyful squeals from the other room and decided to come to see what was going on.

 _Challenge accepted_ , Artie thought when he reached the game room and saw the sight before him.

"Out of the way, El. I'm gonna show Sebastian how we do it over here at the Abrams household," Artie said, waving Ella to the side as they shared a knowing smirk.

"You think you can beat me at DDR, Hot Wheels?" Sebastian laughed at the serious look on Artie's face. "I'd love to see you try."

Artie locked the brakes of his chair before moving himself to the floor. Lying on his stomach, he positioned his hands on the mat, ready for Ella to start the level.

As the song started, Artie and Sebastian moved rapidly to match the dancer on the television. Sebastian stuck his tongue out in concentration as he danced. Artie was confident in his ability to play the game with only his upper body, having successfully beaten both Ella and Griffin, as well as many of his friends.

At the end of the song, Artie reigned supreme. He sat up, glancing at Sebastian with a look that said: " _I told you so_ ". Sebastian wiped away the sweat that had begun to bead on his forehead.

"No shit," the taller boy said out of breath, as he took a knee to get down to Artie's level and fist-bumped him.

On Friday evening, Sebastian had wandered into the living room where he found Artie watching the first _Harry Potter_ movie. He ended up sitting beside him on the couch, and before they knew it, they turned the weekend into a _Harry Potter_ movie marathon, complete with themed snacks, debates over plotlines, and the occasional directorial comment from Artie.

"You are not a Gryffindor," Artie had laughed as he transferred from his chair to the couch, Sebastian handing him his mug of their homemade butterbeer.

"I am too!" Sebastian argued before he began listing some of his traits. "I'm blunt, practical, confident…"

"Yeah, but you're also power hungry, clever, and ruthless," Artie countered, sizing the other boy up before coming to his conclusion. "You're a Slytherin."

A small smile appeared on Sebastian's face and he shrugged, conceding.

"I am a Ravenclaw, through and through," Artie said contently, knowing that there was hardly an argument to be made.

Their armistice was short-lived, however, because come Monday morning, they were back to giving each other the cold shoulder. They may not be as close as Sebastian and Ella, or he and Griffin, but they were coexisting, and things were beginning to look up, which was, honestly, more than Artie was expecting.

* * *

The next day at school, Tina cornered Artie by his locker.

"What's gotten into you?" She asked. "You've been acting really weird and on-edge lately."

Artie went back to his task of shoving some notebooks from his locker into his backpack.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Artie replied before slamming the locker door and beginning to wheel himself down the hallway, Tina following close behind.

"Come on, Artie, you know what I mean. The gloominess, the blank stares… you look like you haven't slept in a week, and we haven't been hanging out like we used to. What's going on?" Tina asked him with a look of concern on her face.

Artie and Tina had been best friends for several years, and it didn't shock Artie that she had noticed a change in his demeanor. He briefly contemplated telling her his big secret, but, again, decided not to when he remembered his and Sebastian's text conversation from that first night at Breadstix and thought the better of it.

"Nothing's going on. I'm just having a tough time with this…" Artie paused briefly to look down at the notebook sitting in his lap to find his answer. "Science homework."

Tina's face lit up.

"Well, why didn't you say anything sooner?" She asked, placing an encouraging hand on Artie's shoulder. "We're in the same class. I'll tutor you!"

Artie began to panic inside as he mentally cursed himself for choosing to pretend to fail the one class that they had together.

"Sounds great. Thanks, Tina," Artie said with a pained expression on his face that his friend didn't seem to notice.

Tina walked beside him as they made their way to the science wing of the school before reaching their biology classroom. They took their seats next to each other at the front table, and as class began, Artie zoned out, trying to concoct a plan to get out of Tina's inevitable tutoring session. He knew the functions of the human body like the back of his hand and certainly did not need somebody to break down the already-basic information for him, even if that someone was his best friend.

"Earth to Artie!" Tina called, waving her hand in front of the boy's face. Artie's focus was snapped back into reality and he saw the confused look she was wearing. "I asked you if you wanted to be partners."

"Partners for what?"

"The science project…" Tina said as if the question was the silliest thing she'd ever heard. "Mr. Williams just gave us an assignment on the digestive system that's due on Thursday. There's a written portion, and we have to draw out a life-size diagram, so I think we should begin sooner rather than later so that it gives you more time to understand the material. Why don't I just come over to your house after school and we can get started?"

Artie must have gotten that look of horror on his face again because Tina looked totally spooked. She and Artie hung out at each other's houses all the time, so she didn't think that this was too crazy of a suggestion. Artie's reaction said otherwise, and it freaked her out.

"Are you okay, Artie? Do you need me to take you to the nurse?"

And just as quickly as it had appeared, the terrified look on Artie's face was gone. He realized that in order for Tina not to further suspect anything out of the ordinary, he would have to play it cool. Currently, he was failing.

"No, I'm fine," he said, shaking his head in an attempt to also shake away the lingering anxiety he was experiencing at the thought of having somebody in his house, now that it was Sebastian's home too. "Yes, let's go to my place after school and get started."

* * *

"Alright, let's review the chapter in the textbook first, then I can get started on the written portion, and you can begin drawing the diagram?" Tina suggested as they entered Artie's bedroom.

"You've got it, woman," Artie replied, unhooking his backpack from the handles of his wheelchair and pulling it into his lap so that he was able to retrieve his study materials.

Artie was much less on edge about Tina's presence after sending a series of SOS texts to Sebastian, informing him on his current situation, to which Sebastian agreed to try and avoid coming home until after she was gone:

**A: SOS!**

**S: What's up?**

**A: Tina's coming over after school to work on a project and I need you not to be there.**

**S: Easy. I have Warbler's rehearsal until six, then lax practice until eight. Considering how long it's going to take me to drive home, I shouldn't be back in Lima until about 10 at the earliest. Think your girlfriend will be gone by then?**

**A: Perfect, thx.**

**A: And she's not my girlfriend.**

**S: Whatever you say… ;)**

Tina took a seat on Artie's bed and opened the textbook in her lap. Artie moved out of his chair so that he could sit beside her and look on. She took the time to painstakingly explain every lesson to Artie, and he struggled to keep himself from falling asleep. Though, he had to admit, if he actually _didn't_ know the material, she would've been a pretty great tutor. She's a good friend for wanting to help him- if only she knew that he didn't really need it!

"What do you say we trace your body on to the paper and then afterwards, you can draw the organs while I write the essay?" Tina suggested, pulling a roll of paper she had stolen from her art class out of her backpack. The paper was several feet long- the perfect length for tracing a teenage boy.

Artie nodded as Tina rolled the paper out onto the hardwood floors of Artie's bedroom. She knelt next to it and waited patiently as her friend carefully lowered himself down from his bed onto the floor. Artie arranged his legs so that they were spread out in front of him before using his arms to scoot himself over to where Tina had the paper ready. When he was sitting in the proper spot, he laid down and tried to be still as Tina outlined his body with a pencil. When she was finished, Artie sat up and, once again, scooted himself across the floor, but this time, he reached up to take his seat cushion off of his chair and placed it on the ground, and, himself, on top of it. The cushion was designed to prevent pressure sores and other inconveniences that came with having poor circulation in the lower half of his body, so it was imperative that he remembered to transfer to it when he knew he was going to be out of his chair for a long period of time.

Tina plugged her iPhone into Artie's speaker and queued up a playlist of some of their favorite songs- some Lady Gaga for her, some white rappers for him, and a little bit of country, which was both of their guilty pleasure.

She once again took a seat on Artie's bed, this time sitting up against the headboard and setting Artie's laptop on her legs so that she could type a paper about the structure and function of each organ involved in the digestive system.

They both completed their assigned tasks independently, often singing along to the music as they worked. Tina was already extremely knowledgeable about the unit they were learning about, and "tutoring" Artie had refreshed her mind of some of the smaller details she may have missed, so she was easily able to compose the paper. Artie had a secret talent for drawing- probably because he had gotten so good with his hands over the years- so he was able to sketch and color each organ flawlessly.

A few hours later, Artie had completed his masterpiece as he hummed along to the Eminem song currently blasting from the stereo. He checked his watch that displayed 9:45 as the current time.

Artie shifted his weight so that he was able to grasp the cushion he was sitting on and return it to its rightful spot on his chair before he swiftly pulled himself up from the ground.

When he was back at his usual eye level, he was met with the unexpected view of Tina passed out on his bed, surrounded by a textbook, some notebooks, and several worksheets. The sight of his best friend fast asleep made a small smile appear on Artie's face. She looked so peaceful- not at all like the exuberant and talkative girl she was when she was awake. He quickly turned down the music.

Artie wasn't too concerned about his sleepy pal. She had slept over his house on numerous occasions before, so this wasn't necessarily a cause for alarm. As Artie began getting ready for bed, he realized that now, the stakes were higher. Things _were_ different, thanks to what Artie was now mentally referring to as the "Smythe Factor"- the longer Tina stayed here, the greater the chance that she would run into Sebastian on her way out the door. He certainly couldn't have that happen.

As much as it hurt him to wake her, Artie nudged Tina's shoulder a few times in an attempt to bring her back to reality.

"Hey, T," Artie whispered gently. "Tina, wake up."

Tina rolled over and groaned.

"It's almost 10," Artie told her, and she was instantly wide awake. He then informed her: "I finished the diagram. Wanna see?"

Tina rubbed her eyes before nodding and swinging her legs to the side of the bed before standing up. Artie led her over to the paper on the ground, and her face lit up when she saw his creation.

"This is amazing, Artie!" she said, kneeling beside it and tracing her fingers across where Artie had colored each organ in a different color, even going the extra mile to add a face and hair to their "person".

Artie smiled back at her, but just then, he heard the sound of the mud room door opening and the familiar sound of dress shoes on the hardwood. Artie's panic once again returned as he realized that Sebastian was home early. As Tina obliviously continued to admire their project, Artie slipped his cell phone out of his pocket and typed an urgent message to Sebastian, hoping and praying that he saw it in time.

**RUN UPSTAIRS! TINA IS ABOUT TO LEAVE AND SHE CAN'T SEE YOU!**

Artie clicked send and listened for the "ding" of a cell phone just outside his bedroom door. As expected, a "ding" was heard, followed by the sound of somebody sprinting through the kitchen and up the stairs.

Tina then stood up and began packing up her belongings before rolling the large piece of paper carefully and stuffing it in her bag. When she was ready, Artie, anxious blood coursing through his veins, led her into the grand foyer before waving goodbye as she exited the front door.

Closing it behind her, Artie let out a massive breath he didn't even know he was holding. He spun around in time to see Sebastian standing at the top of the stairs, looking down at him. They shared a relieved glance, and Sebastian winked before retreating to his bedroom.

That was a close one- much closer than he was anticipating. Artie knew then that they couldn't sneak around forever, and the longer he and Sebastian dragged out their secret life, the worse the consequences would be when word got out.

Sebastian was also proving to be not as bad of a person as Artie thought he was. Sure, he said a demeaning comment every once in a while, but he was fun to hang out with when they were alone. Artie realized then that maybe he didn't _want_ to keep Sebastian a secret anymore. Maybe they should've just ripped the band-aid off in the beginning and avoided all of this drama in the first place. Well, too late now.

Artie sighed.

This was all proving to be _much_ more difficult than originally expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I imagined Sebastian and Artie both secretly loving Harry Potter, and I read on the Glee Fandom Wikia that Artie's bio on the Fox website at one point said that he loved to play Dance Dance Revolution with his hands, so that's where that random, yet adorable, story came from!
> 
> Sorry this chapter was kind of slow! It was a bit of a "filler" before we get into the "Michael" drama starting next chapter! :)  
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_**SEBASTIAN** _

"Nice stain, Sebastian," Jeff said with an amused tone to his voice, nodding his head in the direction of the blazer Sebastian was wearing.

Nick and Thad snickered in response to Jeff's comment as Sebastian looked down, groaning as he saw the bright red stain on his Dalton Academy uniform.

"Tough night?" Nick asked, seeing that Sebastian looked particularly inconvenienced by the discolored fabric.

"I hit traffic on my way home last night, and by the time I got home, I was already dog tired. Then, as if my night couldn't get any worse, I remembered that I had to write that research paper for Spanish class that I had completely forgotten about. I was up all night studying, and I had some red wine to take the edge off," Sebastian explained to his friends. "I guess I spilled some."

The three Warblers nodded understandingly.

"I swear, Seb, you're the only seventeen-year-old kid I know who drinks _wine_ ," Jeff said, wrinkling his nose in disgust. "You remind me of my mother."

The boys were currently sitting in one of Dalton Academy's several study nooks around the campus during their free period. Normally, free periods were used to get a head start on homework or meet with teachers for extra help, but Sebastian and his friends most often used them as opportunities to hang out.

Sebastian once again glanced down at the out-of-place blotch of red on his navy blue uniform. He mentally cursed himself for not noticing it this morning before he left home, for he would've chosen a different blazer to wear today. Instead, he had to spend the rest of the day walking around looking like a slob.

He thought about heading to the restroom to rub some water on the stain to try to lighten it up, but he remembered hearing somewhere that that's actually worse than just leaving it be. Just when he was about to give up worrying about it, he decided to take a different approach.

Sebastian slipped his phone out of his pocket as he stood up and left his friends, walking over to an empty space in the hallway as he found the familiar name in his contacts.

Blaine Anderson.

The boy was currently one of the New Directions' breakout stars, but just last year, he had attended Dalton Academy. Although Sebastian hadn't been a member of The Warblers when Blaine was on the team, they shared many mutual friends who are always raving about him. From what he had heard, Blaine was sex-on-a-stick and sang like a dream, so Sebastian was sad he had missed him. Over the last few months, Sebastian had made it his life's mission to seduce the boy, constantly texting with him and inviting him out to coffee. Yes, Sebastian was aware that Blaine was in a relationship with that Kurt guy, but Sebastian knew that Blaine could do better, and he was determined to help him see the light.

If there was anyone who knew the proper way to get red wine out of his uniform, it was Blaine.

Sebastian clicked on his name, and the line rang three times before he heard the familiar voice pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Blaine," Sebastian greeted the boy. "How's public school treating you?"

"Great, thank you for asking," Blaine replied, a slight annoyance present in his voice that made Sebastian smile. His resentment was delicious. "What's going on with you?"

"Oh, well, funny story, actually. I seem to have had a little mishap involving some red wine last night and stained my blazer. When trying to figure out a way to fix it, I thought to myself, who better to consult than Blaine? From one Head Warbler to another, of course."

"I've been there," Blaine laughed. "When you get home, mix some vinegar with water and dab the fabric, then get it dry cleaned. You're welcome in advance."

Sebastian nodded.

"Sounds good. Thanks, man, I really appreciate it. I can't wait to see you guys at Regionals, especially because that's where your season will end," Sebastian said, resorting to his usual snarkiness.

 _Why do I always do this?!_ Sebastian thought to himself with a silent shake of his head.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Blaine replied. "We've got a secret weapon- Michael Jackson. We did him for Sectionals, and it worked out swimmingly, so we're going to ride that wave through Regionals too. You've got your work cut out for you if you want to beat us."

At the giddiness in Blaine's voice, Sebastian suddenly had an idea. The kind of idea that, if this were a cartoon, a giant, shining, bright lightbulb would have appeared above his head.

"We'll see about that," Sebastian retorted before hanging up, a mischievous smile spreading across his face.

* * *

_**ARTIE** _

"Okay, favorite Michael Jackson memory. Go," Blaine said to the group.

Blaine, Kurt, Artie, Santana, and Rachel had gathered at The Lima Bean after school for a little afternoon pick-me-up, and they were all still thrilled about the decision Mr. Schue had approved to do Michael Jackson songs at their upcoming Regional competition.

"When I was one, my mom showed me the VHS tape of his Motown special, and when he did the moonwalk across the stage for the first time in history, I uttered my first words: 'Hot damn'," Artie said, dramatically looking off into the distance.

"I owe the King of Pop a deep debt of gratitude," Kurt shared. "He was the first one to pull off the sequined military jacket, long before one Kurt Hummel made it iconic."

"I have to be honest, I never really got him," Rachel admitted, much to the shock of her friends.

"And we are no longer on speaking terms," Artie said, holding up a hand with hopes to silence her.

"No, I think he's an amazing performer, but I've never really just got what he was about."

"Rachel, he was best friends with Liza Minelli and Liz Taylor," Kurt reminded her as if that were reason enough for her to be a fan.

"No, all I'm saying is that I just… I haven't connected with him the way that I have with the likes of Barbra or either of the Stephens," Rachel defended herself, elaborating when Artie gave her a confused look: "Sondheim. Schwartz."

"I'd throw this mocha in your face, but it's not nearly scalding enough," Santana told her, clearly offended.

"Okay, but since you are all so jazzed about him, I think it's a good idea for Regionals," Rachel concluded, receiving some approving nods from her friends.

"Ooh, that might not be the best idea," a voice Artie was all-too-familiar with said from behind him.

The group of New Directions turned around, eyes met with the malicious smile of one Sebastian Smythe.

"Hey, Blaine. Hey, Artie. Hello, everyone else."

"Does he live here or something?!" Kurt said to Blaine, clearly exasperated with the Warbler's presence, before turning to the boy himself. "Seriously, you are always here!"

Sebastian smiled smugly.

"Why don't you think that's a good idea?" Artie asked, placing his elbow on the back of his chair, adequately keeping him turned around in his seat as he addressed Sebastian.

"Because we're doing MJ for Regionals," Sebastian said simply. "You see, The Warblers drew first position, so as soon as I heard what your plan was, I changed our setlist accordingly."

"I'm sorry," Rachel began, panic rising in her voice as she set her latte down on the table in front of her. "How did you hear?!"

"Blaine told me this morning. I just called for a tip on how to get red wine out of my blazer piping, and he would not stop going on about it," Sebastian said with a smile.

Kurt, Artie, Santana, and Rachel turned to Blaine with their jaws hanging, appalled that he had spilled their theme to the enemy before they had even had a chance to determine which songs they were going to sing.

"I may have mentioned it," Blaine said quietly, a look of guilt present on his face.

"How often do you talk?" Kurt asked his boyfriend, clearly beginning to get territorial.

"Oh, hey, Kurt! I didn't recognize you! You are wearing boy clothes for once!" came Sebastian's zinger of a response, which was met with a glare from the opposing party.

"Alright, Twink," Santana said, standing up and pointing her finger in Sebastian's face. Artie could practically see the steam blowing out of her ears. "I think it's time that I show you a little Lima Heights hospitality."

"Unless you want to join your relatives in prison, that's probably not the best idea," Sebastian warned her, unbothered by her rage. "You see, my dad is sort of what you'd call a State's attorney. But if you had a piñata you wanted delivered, I bet he could make sure that got to them."

Santana was caught off guard by Sebastian's quick-witted response. She wasn't used to having somebody who could out-insult her so easily. Stunned, she sat back down in her seat.

"Alright, so here's what you guys should know," Sebastian began, finally getting to tell them what he had come to the coffee shop to say in the first place. He had seen Artie's text in the family group chat keeping the adults informed on his plans, and jumped at the chance to ruin the New Directions' days. "I am captain of The Warblers now, and I'm tired of playing nice. You're going to have to fight us for the rights to Jackson, and that's a battle we both know you're going to lose. So have fun coming up with a new theme for Regionals. See you later."

Sebastian turned around and walked out the door of the café, leaving the New Directions members silent in his wake.

"There has to be some kind of show choir competition committee we can complain to," Rachel suggested eventually.

"I know it sucks, guys, but it's not the end of the world," Blaine reminded them, attempting to save himself from being the target of more blame. "Heck, you had your setlist stolen the day of the competition at Sectionals and you pulled that one off!"

"They can have our Journey and our _Dreamgirls_. But pilfering my Michael?! Mm-mmm. That's another level not okay," Artie said, shaking his head.

"Nice going, Wonder Twin," Santana spoke up, taking her frustrations out on the former Dalton student. "You totally gave away our idea. Clearly once a Warbler, always a Warbler. You're on notice, as far as I'm concerned."

Sensing that the friend group's mood wasn't going to lighten anytime soon, they began to get up and throw away their empty coffee cups.

They were on their way out the door when Kurt turned to Artie.

"Hey, Sebastian said his dad is a State's attorney… Isn't that what your mom does?"

Artie felt his face grow white as a ghost. He hadn't exactly thought about how Sebastian sharing his father's profession and name-dropping Artie while greeting the group could've been a red flag to his friends.

He just replied with the first thing that came to mind before quickly wheeling away, hoping that Kurt wasn't able to see the guilty look on his face:

"Huh. Weird. Must be… another state."

* * *

"Did you guys get that text?!" Rachel asked, holding up her phone as she approached Kurt, Santana, Artie, and Blaine in the hallway. All four of them nodded.

The members of the New Directions that were present at The Lima Bean yesterday afternoon had all received matching text messages from an unidentified number that stated:

**DALTON ACADEMY CHOIR ROOM.**

**4 PM SHARP.**

The mysterious message had piqued the interest of its recipients, and none of them were known to back down from a challenge.

* * *

Just as planned, after Mr. Schue released them from practice, the quintet headed to where Blaine's grey Volkswagen Jetta was waiting for them in the parking lot.

Since his boyfriend was driving, Kurt called shotgun, which meant that Artie got stuck in the back with the girls.

"Do you need any help?" Santana asked nervously as Artie prepared to transfer from his chair to the backseat.

Artie shook his head, allowing a small smile to come to his face at her concern. He locked the brakes on his chair and first moved his legs with his hands, setting his feet on the floor of the car. He then grabbed the safety handle on the roof with one hand and the headrest of the seat he'd be sitting in with the other, successfully hoisting himself into the vehicle. Santana then collapsed his chair and stored it in the trunk before climbing on the opposite side.

The roughly hour-and-a-half ride to Westerville from Lima wasn't anything special. Blaine played some show tunes to appease Kurt and Rachel, and Santana and Artie busied themselves by having several thumb wars in the backseat, almost oblivious to the fact that Rachel was sitting between them. She grew annoyed with their antics pretty quickly, vowing to force one of them to sit in the middle seat on the ride home. Other than that, the ride was mostly silent, due to the fact that the group was still pretty shaken up after their run-in with Sebastian the day before.

Artie did not speak a word to Sebastian all night after seeing him at The Lima Bean. He was still very angry about the situation that had unfolded, and in typical Artie fashion, he opted to hold his tongue to prevent saying something potentially hurtful that he would regret.

Before they knew it, they had arrived at the Dalton Academy campus. Out of the visiting group, only Blaine and Kurt had been to Dalton before, having previously attended the school, so this was an eye-opening experience for Artie, Santana, and Rachel.

Artie quickly realized that the school was hardly handicap accessible. Upon leaving the car, he was met with a gravel driveway- arguably one of the most difficult surfaces to wheel over, next to shag carpet. With a little help from Santana pushing him while he held onto the chair's armrests for dear life, hoping he wouldn't topple out onto the ground, they made it across the rocky road… only to discover that there were two steps in order to enter the building.

Artie glared at the steps that seemed to be mocking his existence as his friends each grabbed a different part of the chair (the girls each took a handle, and the boys each took a push rim) and lifted him up and over the stairs.

"Geez, sorry, Artie. I didn't realize how inaccessible this place was," Blaine apologized.

"It's not your fault," Artie was quick to assure his friend. "Most able-bodied people have never considered accessibility, and buildings aren't designed with it in mind- especially buildings as old as this one."

Kurt and Blaine led the way to the choir room, home to the elusive Dalton Academy Warblers. Artie, Rachel, and Santana looked around them, in awe of the enormous and expensive-looking school. They certainly weren't at McKinley anymore.

In the hallway, many students passed the group as they went about their way, but one student- a boy in a wheelchair- caught Artie's eye.

He shared a courteous, tight-lipped smile with the boy as they passed. The type of forced grin that silently said " _Yup, I feel you, kid"_.

Meanwhile, Artie was really thinking, " _How the heck is he able to go about his school day in a building as inaccessible as this one?!"_

As they turned a corner, they were immediately met with the sound of the opening bars of The Jackson 5's "I Want You Back", sung a cappella, of course. They followed the sounds of the voices until the army of blazer-wearing teenage boys came into view.

And so did _more stairs_.

Artie sighed as his friends resumed their previous positions, lifting him down the stairs so that they could enter the rival team's practice space.

It didn't take long for them to spot Sebastian, who was standing front and center while singing lead in the number. The five McKinley kids stood (and sat) at the front of the room, as the over-confident Warbler sang certain lines pointedly at specific members of their group, each directed lyric receiving an eye roll from the intended audience.

At the beginning of the first chorus, they split up to stand on opposite sides of the performers- the boys to the left, and the girls to the right.

Sebastian continued to sing lines directly to Artie and Blaine, often getting in their faces or dancing just inches away from them. It was certainly obvious that he was playing to them the most out of the bunch- causing confusion amongst their friends.

As they finished their number standing cleanly in formation, the New Directions were speechless.

"Well, if you guys want to forfeit now, go ahead," Sebastian said, his trademark cocky smile appearing on his face. "Or, Blaine, if you want to rejoin the group you abandoned…"

Blaine was silent for a moment before shaking his head.

"I used to be really proud of being a Warbler. Not because we were good, but because we were really _classy_ ," he replied, putting on an unimpressed façade. "None of that was classy. Nothing."

Sebastian laughed as the kids turned to leave.

"And what did you think, Shaqueera?"

Santana stopped dead in her tracks. The rest of the New Directions turned around too, hoping to witness Auntie Snixx go all Lima Heights on his sorry ass.

"I thought you sucked, Fievel. And if that's your best MJ, I'm going to wipe the floor at Regionals with your wannabe Disney prince haircut."

After they once again lifted Artie over the stairs, Blaine leaned over to Santana.

"What'd you really think?" he asked.

"I think we've got a serious problem."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now we're getting into some drama! I bet you noticed that I included several scenes and dialogue from the actual episode (3x11) in this chapter! That ending scene where The Warblers sing "I Want You Back" was originally in the episode too, but they ended up cutting it! You can find the original video on YouTube!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

_**ARTIE** _

Word about their trip to Dalton had spread among the New Directions pretty fast, and all of their teammates were eager to hear the details of their escapade the next day before rehearsal began.

Santana, Artie, Blaine, Rachel, and Kurt stood (and sat, in Artie's case) at the front of the room and described what they saw to their friends who were on the edge of their seats listening.

"They were clean, they were upbeat, and they were entertaining," Rachel reported. "They're the total package."

"And that evil Sebastian creature is not playing around. He's out for blood," Santana added.

"The reputation the New Directions has built gives off the vibe that we are the underdogs. The losers. Outcasts," Blaine said, crossing his arms over his chest. "We have to prove to everyone that we're a force to be reckoned with. It's the only way to get people to take us seriously."

"We should all be on notice. I mean, after Vocal Adrenaline, The Warblers are the best Glee Club in the state," Finn pointed out. "For a lot of us, this is our last shot at a championship, so we should stop complaining about The Warblers and figure out how to beat them."

"I couldn't have said it better myself, Finn," Mr. Schue said as he walked into the choir room. The five students took their seats as he continued talking. "I'm less worried about our setlist right now and more interested in getting us in the mindset to crush those guys."

The kids each nodded in understanding.

"Which is why our lesson for the week is…" he began, heading over to the whiteboard with a dry erase marker in hand. He wrote the letters "WWMJD" before spinning back around to face his students.

"What would Michael Jackson do?"

"He'd fight back," Finn suggested. "He'd say Regionals is ours, MJ is ours, and if they want it, they can pry it from our sequin-gloved hand."

"Mm-hmm. Straight up," Artie agreed. "In 1983, MTV said they wouldn't air his 'Billie Jean' video. What'd he do? He fought back. They aired it, and the 'Thriller' album sold an additional ten million copies."

"That's right," Mr. Schue confirmed. "We all need to channel our inner Michaels for the week, so start thinking of some songs you'd like to sing for us in here, as well as some you'd like to perform at Regionals- because we WILL be the team using MJ!"

"I know what Michael would do. I think he would take it to the streets," Blaine suggested, piquing the interest of his teammates.

"Go on…" Artie said as he gestured with his hands for his friend to continue, leaning forward in his chair, clearly already a fan of this idea.

"Sebastian and The Warblers invited us to Dalton so that they could flaunt themselves in our faces. Why don't we send a little intimidating text of our own and challenge them to some sort of sing-off?"

The New Directions all started chattering amongst themselves excitedly at the prospect of getting down and dirty with their rivals. They had never done anything like this before, so the idea was invigorating for sure.

"I don't know, you guys," Mr. Schue warned. "That doesn't seem very classy."

"Don't worry, The Warblers seem to have lost the last ounce of their class after Blaine and I transferred to McKinley," Kurt said, shaking his head.

"It'll all be in good fun, Mr. Schue," Blaine promised with a million-dollar smile that he knew nobody could resist.

"Okay, okay," Mr. Schue conceded. "Just be safe. And if anyone asks, I didn't permit you to do this."

A chorus of cheers came from the New Directions members as they celebrated their small victory before getting right down to business planning their little upcoming competition.

* * *

_**SEBASTIAN** _

"Okay, guys. That's it for practice today. We'll convene again tomorrow, but before then, make sure everyone learns their parts for 'Beat It'," Sebastian said as he dismissed the members of The Warblers for the night.

Not a moment later, Sebastian's cell phone vibrated from his back pocket. He pulled it out, and seeing that it was a text from Blaine, he decided to open it.

**THINK YOU'RE "BAD"?**

**MEET US ON THE THIRD FLOOR OF THE LIMA MALL PARKING GARAGE.**

**TONIGHT AT 8.**

Sebastian let out a low chuckle as he read the message.

"On second thought…" Sebastian said, turning to his teammates and holding up his phone with the text displayed clearly on the screen.

"We've got a little bit more practicing to do."

* * *

Sebastian and The Warblers walked in a group over to where they were instructed to meet. The sound of their dress shoes on the concrete floor of the parking deck echoed as they approached the silhouettes of two hooded figures.

It wasn't until they grew closer that Sebastian recognized them as Blaine and that feisty Santana.

"Well? We're here," Sebastian stated as The Warblers stood silently behind him.

"We've got something to settle. Both of us want to use MJ, but only one can," Blaine replied, his arms crossed over his leather jacket.

"We're having a Jackson-off, Nick-at-Nite. The winner gets the King of Pop for Regionals," the girl added.

"What, us against… the two of you?" Sebastian laughed, glancing between his teammates and the two talented, but unintimidating, singers before him. "You really think you're that bad? Is that what they teach you at that little public school of yours?"

"It's time to see who's bad," Blaine challenged.

Santana raised her arm in the air and snapped her fingers, cueing their teammates to reveal themselves from where they had been lurking in the dark shadows. Soon, the two were joined by twelve others also in leather jackets. Sebastian raised both eyebrows when he saw the group assemble.

The Warblers then started up their acapella background vocals as the New Directions stepped into formation. Artie and Sebastian were at the front of both packs, eager for the chance to show down.

Artie unlocked his wheels and started singing as the New Directions advanced towards The Warblers, causing them to have to take several steps back to avoid a collision.

 _Power moves from the start. Smart._ Sebastian thought to himself as Artie not-so-subtly glared in his direction. Sebastian didn't find him the least bit threatening. As Artie tried his best to get all up in Sebastian's personal space, the taller boy couldn't help but smile a douchey smirk down at him.

Artie was joined by Blaine for the song's second verse, and though their harmonies were pretty, Sebastian wasn't about to let the two of them have all the fun. He joined in singing when they reached the line "Your talk is cheap, you're not a man". And it must've looked like he and Artie were about to physically go at it, because a few of Sebastian's teammates had to restrain him and pull him away from the seated boy.

The rest of the performance was a series of coordinated choreography and getting in each other's faces. Around the end of the song, a member of The Warblers retrieved the brown paper bag that they had stealthily hidden before the showdown had begun. One Warbler passed it to the next, and eventually, it found itself into Sebastian's hands.

Just in time for the ending note, Sebastian pulled out the bag's contents- a cherry slushie- and tossed it in front of him, aiming for Kurt's undoubtedly designer ensemble. However, right after the slushie was thrown, Blaine jumped in front of his boyfriend, taking the bulk of the icy, syrupy drink to the face.

He cried out in pain as he hit the floor, covering his face with his hands as his eyes burned.

Sebastian felt an instant pang of regret as he heard Blaine's screams, but for pride reasons, he wouldn't let it show on his face. He needed to put on the façade that he had done that on purpose. In reality, all he had intended to do was leave Kurt with a hefty bill at the dry cleaner's.

The New Directions crowded around him in concern as The Warblers held back behind Sebastian- none of them knew what the slushie was for, but they didn't expect their leader to maim one of their former members.

The prep school boys slowly began backing away, Sebastian leading the pack. As they were retreating, he did glance over his shoulder once and while the rest of the New Directions were focusing on their man that was down, Artie was flashing him a stone cold glare.

Maybe Sebastian was more intimidated by Artie than he previously thought.

* * *

Sebastian had gotten home about five minutes before he heard Artie enter the front door. One of his friends must have dropped him off. Sebastian knew that Artie was going to have to roll through the kitchen in order to get to his bedroom, so the Warbler made himself look busy by cracking open a can of Coke from the fridge. He listened for the now-familiar sound of rubber wheels on the hardwood flooring, and he grew more nervous the closer it got.

Artie entered the room and took one look at Sebastian before all of the anger he was struggling to keep inside finally burst out.

"What the hell, Sebastian!" Artie shouted, using his fingerless glove-covered hands to push Sebastian's hips, causing him to slightly stumble backwards. Pushing at his shoulders probably would've been more effective, but, of course, that particular body part was out of his reach.

"Hey, watch it, Hot Wheels!" Sebastian shouted back, taking a hand and pushing Artie's face away, knocking his glasses askew.

The use of the slightly offensive nickname made Artie's blood boil even more. After fixing his glasses, he charged at the boy again, beginning somewhat of a shoving match between the two. Both Sebastian and Artie were shouting, cursing, and grunting now, not paying any attention to the house's other three inhabitants who were trying to sleep. They were both concentrating so hard on trying to beat up the other that neither of them heard the parents come running down the stairs to see what all the commotion was about.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Harrison yelled, getting the boys' attention as he got between them and pushed them apart. "What the hell's the matter with you two?!"

The older man looked between the kids- Artie's hair was all messed up, and Sebastian's uniform blazer was missing a button or two- trying to figure out what was going on.

"Sebastian…" Artie paused briefly, making eye contact with him. Sebastian watched the look on Artie's face change from rage to defeat. At that moment, Sebastian knew that he wasn't going to tattle on him. "Took the last Coke out of the fridge. I got angry."

"You boys woke us up over a can of _Coca-Cola_?!" Nancy asked, exasperated. "You two are unbelievable. Unbelievable!"

She then headed back upstairs and Harrison gave the two boys another glance before doing the same.

Artie and Sebastian were once again alone, and even though he had decided not to rat him out, Sebastian could tell that Artie was still outraged.

"You may have blinded him, Sebastian. He's at the E.R. right now because of you. Don't you have any human decency or compassion?!" Artie asked through gritted teeth before wheeling off towards his bedroom.

 _But I didn't mean to! I didn't want to hurt anyone!_ Sebastian wanted to yell after him. But he didn't.

And then Sebastian heard Artie's bedroom door slam shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More drama! I included several more scenes and dialogue from the actual episode (3x11) in this chapter!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

_**ARTIE** _

The next morning, the New Directions decided to meet in the choir room before first period. There was an unusual, eerie silence among the friends because everyone was still worried about Blaine's condition. Kurt had taken him to the hospital the night before, so everyone was waiting for him to arrive so that they could hear the latest update on their friend.

Eventually, Kurt walked into the room. His gaze was empty, silently letting his teammates know that he was still out of it after the events of the night before.

"How is he? Is he okay?" Rachel asked, nervously playing with the pendant on her necklace.

"Uh, it's his right eye. The doctor says that his cornea is deeply scratched and he has to have surgery," was Kurt's melancholy response. Various members of the group shared concerned looks.

"In all my years as a teacher and a student, I've never known a slushie to do that kind of damage," Mr. Schue said with a shake of his head.

"That's 'cause it wasn't a normal slushie, Mr. Schue," Finn insisted. "There was… stuff in it- rocks, or something. He wanted to do that damage."

"Well, unless you have proof that he tampered with the slushie, the police aren't interested in getting involved," Mr. Schue told the kids regretfully.

"Sebastian is evil," Kurt spoke up. "He needs to be expelled."

The New Directions members who weren't already seated in the risers took their seats as Mr. Schue went on.

"Look, Figgins and I spoke to Dalton's headmaster. They're opening up an investigation. So, guys, I'm telling you, please let the system handle this one."

"Dalton's old-school, Mr. Schue," Artie said, finally breaking his silence on the matter. "They're not going to turn their backs on one of their own. We need payback."

"An eye for an eye," Mike Chang suggested from his seat directly to the boy's right.

"No! I have a zero-tolerance policy for violence of any kind," Mr. Schue reminded them. "That's not how we do things."

And that was the straw that broke the camel's back for Artie. He couldn't take it anymore.

"No, we sing! And that's _all_ we ever do!" He said, raising his voice the angrier he became.

"Do you want to get us disqualified from Regionals?!" Mr. Schue countered.

"I don't give a _damn_ about Regionals!" Artie shouted back, startled looks appearing on his friends' faces. Artie was usually so cool, calm, and collected- it was extremely unlike him to be so worked up about something like this. "What do you expect from us?! We're _people_! I know the rest of the world might not see us like that, but when they tease us, and throw stuff at us, and toss us in dumpsters, and tell us that we're nothing but losers with stupid dreams, it freakin' hurts! And we're supposed to turn the other cheek and be the bigger man by telling ourselves that those dreams and how hard we work make us better than them? But it gets pretty damn hard to feel that way when they always get to win."

"I get how upsetting this is for you-" Mr. Schue started to go on another one of his lectures before Artie cut him off.

"No! You don't!" Artie yelled, unlocking the brakes of his chair and pushing himself forward so that he could make better eye contact with the teacher. "And don't give me any of that 'It gets better' crap because I'm not interested in it getting any better- I want it to _be_ better! Like, right now! I want to hurt them. The way that they hurt us. No, worse! I want them to feel my pain, because, frankly, that's all I have left to give."

The New Directions members all looked around at one another with their mouths open. They could not believe that Artie, of all people, had just lashed out like that. He was the peacekeeper, not the instigator. Something about this situation must really have been bothering him for him to have yelled at Mr. Schue like this.

"Artie…" Mr. Schue took a deep breath, clearly trying to put the student's uncharacteristic freak out behind him. "Take a break. We'll be here when you get back."

Artie continued to stare at him, breathing heavily with an angry look on his face.

"Artie?" Mr. Schue asked, trying to get the boy's attention to see if he had heard what he had said. "Artie?"

"I think I better roll away," Artie said finally, pulling one wheel back while pushing the other one forward to pivot himself towards the doorway.

Halfway to the room's exit, Artie glanced over his shoulder at his friends who were still staring at him, shocked.

"Who's with me?" he called.

To everyone's surprise, the quiet Mike Chang stood up and followed Artie out of the choir room.

Artie led Mike down the hallway and out the back door of the school. Artie was familiar with this exit, as it was where one of the only two ramps for him to enter and exit the building was located, but he also knew that it was a quiet spot where he could clear his mind.

Artie locked his wheels in place and stared out into the back parking lot of the school. Mike sat down on a bench beside him, also thinking quietly before he finally spoke up.

"I thought that it was pretty cool- what you just did in there."

Artie looked over at him and managed a small smile before turning back.

"I'm just… I am so over all of this. I'm sick of being viewed as lesser-than. I'm sick of having to constantly act tough. I'm sick of always having to just keep on keepin' on. And I'm _sick_ of that douchebag Sebastian, and I can't escape him. I just want things to be better," Artie huffed.

Mike looked at him with a confused look.

"You can't escape him?"

Artie felt the color drain from his face. He had said too much.

 _Shit_ , Artie thought to himself. _Cat's outta the bag now, I guess._

"If I tell you something, you promise not to tell anyone? Not a soul," Artie said, looking him straight in the eyes.

Mike mimed zipping his lips, locking them, and throwing the key over his shoulder as he leaned forward to listen to what Artie had to say.

Artie knew that Sebastian was going to kill him for telling anybody, but at this point, he didn't even care. Sebastian was dead to him.

"Sebastian's my step-brother," Artie said finally, a look of shock appearing on Mike's face.

"Well, almost-step-brother, I guess. Our parents aren't married yet. The arrangement is relatively new, but we live together," Artie clarified. "We haven't been getting along, for obvious reasons, but last night was what really set me off. What he did was unforgivable."

"Why haven't you told any of us about this?" Mike asked, eliciting a laugh in response from Artie.

"Would you have?!" Artie replied. "He's a vile and vapid human being. I didn't want anybody to associate me with someone like him."

Mike put a comforting hand on Artie's shoulder.

"Artie, you're a good guy. Everybody would understand that the circumstances are out of your control. Nobody blames you for his actions."

"I know that, but…" Artie's voice trailed off. "I thought it would be just a healthy rivalry, but after what he did to Blaine… He can't be forgiven for something like that."

Both boys remained silent for a long time. Artie knew that they were going to miss first period if they stayed out here any longer, and he felt like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders now that he had confided in somebody.

"Thanks for coming out here with me. It means a lot to know that someone like you has my back," Artie stated as he looked up, meeting his friend's eyes.

Mike smiled, clapping Artie on the shoulder as he stood up and prepared to lead Artie back into the building.

"Hey, Mike?" Artie said from behind, causing his friend to turn back around. "I know you don't talk too much, but don't tell anyone about this, okay? Nobody knows- not even Tina- and I'd like to keep it that way."

Mike nodded. He still didn't fully understand why Artie was choosing to keep this secret from the rest of their friends, but it wasn't his place to expose the details of Artie's personal life.

* * *

Santana and Artie headed down the hallway side by side as they left their history class.

Santana held her books tightly against her chest, peering into what she _thought_ was an empty classroom as she passed by. Instead, to her surprise, there was a familiar face sitting all alone inside at one of the tables.

"Hey," she softly called to Artie, tapping him on the shoulder. When he turned around, she nodded her head in the direction of the dark classroom. Artie gave her a puzzled look before she entered, him following right behind her.

There, he saw Kurt staring solemnly down at a notebook in front of him.

"Hey," Santana greeted him, announcing the arrival of his two friends. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to keep the flames from shooting out the side of my face," Kurt answered, only glancing up for a moment.

"Well, that outfit isn't helping," Santana said before pulling over a chair. Artie locked his wheels before he folded his hands in his lap.

"I agree with Artie," Kurt said, looking over at his bespectacled friend. "I'm tired of being stepped on all the time. I take a lot of crap from a lot of people, but I refuse to take it from Sebastian the criminal chipmunk."

His last comment earned a smile from Santana and Artie.

"So, I've been sitting here for the last hour making a list of ways to get back at him."

"Well, today's your lucky day because Auntie Snixx just arrived on the Bitchtown Express," Santana said, eager for the chance to destroy the Warbler once and for all. "Now, my suggestion is that we drag him bound and gagged to a tattoo parlor for a tramp stamp that reads: 'Tips appreciated'."

"Or: 'Congratulations, you're my thousandth customer!" Artie chimed in.

"After what he did to Blaine…" Kurt began, shaking his head in disbelief that somebody so young could be so cruel. "I really wanted to hurt him. But I can't. I've fought against violence at this school for too long. I have to take the high road."

Santana nodded in approval, however, also disappointed that her tramp stamp idea was shot down.

"You know what, Prancy Smurf? I respect that," she replied. "I want to go to a college that isn't a FEMA trailer in a prison yard, so let's take the high road together. We're not going to beat Sebastian by playing dirty, but we are gonna beat him."

"And how are we going to do that?" Kurt asked.

"I say, we challenge him to another Jackson-off. This time, not on neutral ground. I want to go to Dalton myself and beat him there. One on one," Santana said, sitting back in her seat, clearly pleased with her idea.

"I'll drive the getaway car!" Artie suggested gleefully.

"What will that do?" Kurt asked. "How is another sing-off going to help anything?"

"Picture this, Lady Hummel: this time, I'll be wearing a wire of some sort. I'll verbally trick him into admitting that he threw something into that slushie and we can send that recording on its merry way. We get it into the right hands, and we'll never hear from him again," Santana replied.

"That's where it's at, yo!" Artie said, high-fiving the girl.

Kurt still didn't look too keen on the idea, but he didn't say no, either.

"Okay," he said eventually. "I guess it couldn't hurt to try, right?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mooooore drama! I included several more scenes and dialogue from the actual episode (3x11) in this chapter, as well as added some details to those scenes of my own! I loved the idea from the episode of Mike walking off with Artie before they performed "Scream", so I had him be the first one Artie confides in.
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

_**SEBASTIAN** _

It had been a few days since the slushie incident in the parking garage, and Sebastian still felt remorseful for what he had done.

The Warblers had continued to prepare Michael Jackson songs for Regionals, and Sebastian had to be their fearless leader, so he tried to put the thoughts about Blaine behind him. They had almost perfected their setlist when he received a threatening text challenging him to another competition. The text had come from a number that he didn't recognize, however, it began with a Lima area code, so it was pretty safe to assume that it was from a member of the New Directions.

Friday afternoon, Sebastian and The Warblers reported to the Dalton Academy orchestra room, just as they had been instructed. They walked in to find a few members of the school's classical music group packing away their instruments, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The Warblers looked around at one another, sharing confused glances.

Just then, the double doors on the opposite side of the room burst open, revealing McKinley High's resident bitch, Santana Lopez, dressed in a black dress and blazer ensemble- pocket square and all- paired with black high heeled booties and a matching black fedora.

 _She looks ridiculous_ , Sebastian thought to himself.

"Hey, Andrew McCarthy! Don't know if you've heard, but Blaine may lose an eye. The same Blaine that was just besties with most of you not four months ago," the girl shared as she confidently strode into enemy territory.

"Wait, are you serious?!" Trent asked, panic present in his voice. "Is he going to be okay?!"

"Well, sure, if he doesn't care about seeing in three dimensions," Santana answered simply.

"Trent, I've got this," Sebastian said, holding up a hand to silence his teammate before crossing his arms and turning his attention to the girl before him. "Bummer about Blaine. He was pretty. He shouldn't have gotten in the way though. That slushie was meant for Kurt."

Santana remained unimpressed.

"You may look like the villain out of a cheesy '80s high school movie, but you should know that I am fully prepared to go all Danny LaRusso on your ass," she said, advancing towards where Sebastian stood. "Admit that you put something in that slushie. What was it, huh? Glass? Asphalt?"

"Red dye number six," Sebastian fibbed.

"You're a liar."

"She questioned my honor," Sebastian pretended to be offended, glancing behind him at his fellow Warblers for backup. "I demand satisfaction in Warbler tradition."

"You want to have a duel? Good. That's exactly what I came here for," Santana replied before turning to the Dalton musicians that had been stalling leaving the room in order to eavesdrop on their peers. "Cello guys, can you hang back for a second? I'm gonna need you for this one."

"Everyone else, clear out," Sebastian ordered. "I don't want you to see me make a girl cry."

"Let's just keep this on point," Santana said as the cellists sitting in the middle of the room began playing the opening notes of Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal".

As the beginning instrumental part played, Santana cockily took a seat in one of the empty chairs, crossing her legs and raising an eyebrow at Sebastian. Sebastian circled around the room before singing the song's opening verse. Santana joined in afterwards, initially starting with some background vocals before moving into some impressive high notes.

The tension in the room reached astronomical levels as the song progressed. Sebastian and Santana continued to get in each other's faces for the remainder of the tune before the powerful final note.

Both parties were breathing heavily by this point, each thinking that they had outsold the other.

"I was better!" Santana exclaimed.

"You weren't even close," Sebastian smiled, turning around as the doors to the room opened once again, revealing The Warblers, who had been listening to their duel from outside.

"I was better!" she insisted. "Now, tell me the truth, what did you put in that slushie?!"

Sebastian took a deep breath before answering.

"Rock salt. But it's okay."

"Why is it okay? I just told you that Blaine had to have surgery!"

"It's okay because I didn't put anything in this one," Sebastian said, spinning around and dousing the girl with another icy drink he had been handed by one of his teammates.

* * *

_**ARTIE** _

Artie sat in his car as he anxiously waited for Santana's return. She had been in there far longer than he had been expecting, and now he was beginning to worry.

What if Sebastian had decided to hold her captive? Artie wouldn't put it past him to do something elaborate like that. He briefly considered getting out of the car and heading in to see if she needed backup before remembering what a bitch that gravel driveway could be, as well as all of those damn stairs.

Since heading inside was no longer an option, Artie remained in the driver's seat just as they had planned, but it wasn't long before he saw Santana emerge from the school, dripping in red syrup.

"What the hell happened to you?!" Artie exclaimed as she opened the passenger's side door and slid into the car beside him.

"That wretched Sebastian happened to me!" she replied, clearly outraged that the drink had ruined her outfit.

"Well… did you get it?" Artie asked.

A smile appeared on Santana's face as she held up the small silver tape recorder.

"I got it."

* * *

"Come on!" Santana called to the members of the New Directions, waving them into the choir room.

"Here!" Quinn said to Artie, holding her hands out for him to take.

Puzzled, Artie obliged, as he felt a strong push from behind. He looked over his shoulder, and there was Mike Chang with his hands on the handles.

Quinn took Artie's hands and ran backwards as Mike gave some extra force by pushing the chair forward, sending Artie careening into the classroom.

The others ran in behind them, and soon, all of their teammates were present.

"Brittany, lock the door!" Santana instructed her girlfriend.

"Yeah, I don't know how to do that," came the blonde's response.

"Woah, what's going on, guys?" Mr. Schue asked, seeing their hurry.

"We've got The Warblers right where we want them," Santana informed her friends and teacher. "And because he's the smoothest criminal I know, Artie was able to find a spy store that sells top-secret surveillance equipment."

"Not top-secret… I just got a tape recorder from OfficeMax," Artie clarified.

"Okay, okay, whatever. In any case, I taped it to my underboob when we went to Dalton, and I got Sebastian on tape admitting that there was rock salt in that slushie that blinded Blaine," Santana said. "Now, all we have to do is send this tape to the po-po, and that little bitchlet is headed to juvie!"

Santana clicked the "play" button and held the recorder in the air. The New Directions listened as a recording played of Santana aggressively asking what had been in the slushie and Sebastian's simple reply.

"No! No, we're not doing that," Mr. Schuester shook his head.

"Why?! Mr. Schue, this isn't violent, this is clever! I taped it to my underboob!"

"So he gets kicked out of school, The Warblers still do Michael, and they still beat us. Look, I want to see Sebastian's head turning on a spit, but I've realized that you can't go looking for payback every time the world wrongs you," the older man said. "If Michael went after all the haters, he wouldn't have had any time to do all that amazing music. So, we're not gonna punish The Warblers. We're gonna teach them a lesson, and I think I know how."

Santana rolled her eyes.

"I've reserved the auditorium, so if you'll all just follow me," Mr. Schue waved the students over towards the door, and many of them followed.

"Wait! If Kurt would've taped this to his junk, I would've never heard the end of it! We would've had a whole week of songs about it!" Santana protested, clearly offended that her and Artie's plan wasn't receiving the appreciation it deserved.

Brittany took Santana's hand and they followed the rest of their team down to the April Rhodes Civic Pavilion as Mr. Schue briefed them on his plan. They entered through the auditorium's back door and stepped onto the stage as a throng of Warblers filed in.

"Nice of you to show," Artie greeted Sebastian coldly as he rolled himself into the spotlight.

"Is whatever this is going to take long? Because I can't stand the stench of public schools," Sebastian wrinkled his nose as The Warblers sat down in the first two rows of seats.

"It won't take long, and all you have to do is sit and listen," Quinn told the boys as she stuck her hand on her hip.

Sebastian looked to Artie and nodded in his direction, silently telling him to get on with it.

"We're not doing Michael for Regionals," Artie said, his arms crossed over his chest.

"I didn't think you'd surrender that easily," Sebastian retorted.

"We're tired of the fighting and the backstabbing. We're show choirs. We're supposed to be supportive of each other," Kurt said.

"This is what we call taking the high road," Puck chimed in. "Which I was shocked to find out had nothing to do with marijuana."

"Just because you're doing Michael doesn't mean you _understand_ Michael," Artie added, his glare still fixed on Sebastian.

"Oh, and you do?" Sebastian laughed.

"Yes. And we're about to show you," Mercedes answered.

The tune of Michael Jackson's "Black or White" began to fill the auditorium, and the New Directions took their places at the back of the stage.

As Artie rolled himself backwards, he let out a high-pitched "Ow!" and grinned into the audience. He sang the first verse of the song and used his arms to mimic some of Michael Jackson's iconic poses as Rachel pushed him forward, eventually spinning him around to face her when it was her turn to sing.

Santana's powerful solo was next, and it caused a couple of Warblers to raise their eyebrows, impressed. The group lined themselves up along the front of the stage and sang all together- something they knew that The Warblers couldn't do because of all of the moving parts involved with their acapella.

The New Directions then positioned themselves behind Artie, as he began to rap. Artie joined in dancing his own modified versions of the moves his friends were doing behind him as he sang, making his movements appear suave and effortless.

The Warblers once again exchanged impressed glances amongst one another. Sebastian shook his head and covered his mouth with his hand, hoping to effectively hide the small smile that had appeared on his face after watching Artie kill that solo.

By the time they reached the middle of the song, several of The Warblers had gotten out of their seats and, much to Sebastian's chagrin, joined the New Directions on stage. Artie was having a great time dancing around with the rival team, but he kept looking back out into the audience to where Sebastian was now sitting alone.

When the song was over, Sebastian clapped slowly as those on the stage turned to face him.

"Very moving," he said sarcastically.

"Come on, Sebastian!" Warbler Nick called to him, beginning to get annoyed with his leader's unsportsmanlike behavior. "Give it up."

"That is the kind of attitude that lost us Regionals last year," Sebastian replied sternly, pointing a finger in his friend's direction.

"I could call the cops or your headmaster and get you kicked out of school or even arrested for assaulting Blaine with that slushie," Santana informed him.

"All of this would be just _awfully_ terrifying if you had any proof whatsoever," Sebastian stated.

"You mean like you on tape admitting to it?" Santana asked, producing the tape from the pocket of her letterman jacket and passing it to Kurt. Sebastian's face turned white with guilt.

"But you know what? It just wouldn't be as much fun winning Regionals if you weren't there to suffer through all the agony of defeat," Kurt added before tossing the tape to Sebastian.

"At least now, all your teammates get to know exactly what kind of guy you are," Santana said, glancing around her at The Warblers' shocked faces.

"Now get the hell out of my auditorium," Artie said, his arms crossed over his chest and his brows furrowed as Sebastian stood up to leave.

"School's out!" Artie dismissed both teams as he pivoted himself to roll away.

Both teams dispersed, but Artie hung back, pulling his phone out of his pocket and taking time to scroll through his Twitter feed. He wasn't in any rush to leave, and if he was being honest, he preferred to enter the parking lot when there was only a slim-to-none chance he'd be hit by a distracted teenager.

Artie was so engrossed in his social media catch-up that he didn't notice Sebastian re-enter the auditorium.

"Bravo," he called as he walked down the aisle towards the front of the stage.

Artie, startled, looked up and put a hand over his eyes to block the blinding spotlight as he squinted out into the crowd. He rolled his eyes when he recognized Sebastian's figure.

"What the hell are you still doing here? I thought you hated public schools," Artie replied, a slight curiosity detected in his annoyed tone.

"I wanted to talk to you. Alone."

"Couldn't this have waited…" Artie began, lowering his voice for the last part of the sentence, even though they were the only two in the auditorium. " … until we got home?"

Sebastian shook his head as he took a seat in the first row. Artie's heart sped up at the thought of another physical altercation between the two of them- this time, not in the privacy of their own home.

"Look, Sebastian, I can't keep living like this," Artie began to word vomit, saying every little thought that came to his mind. "It's not worth it. You can stay here and do your thing, however offensive and destructive that may be, and I'll go live with my Dad in Akron. I could transfer to Carmel High, join Vocal Adrenaline-"

"Artie. No," Sebastian shook his head again. "I don't want that. And we all know that Vocal Adrenaline would eat you alive."

Artie stared wide-eyed at the taller boy, surprised at the calmness in his voice.

"Will you relax and stop being so uptight for a minute?"

Artie silently nodded. Sensing that this conversation was going to be worth his time, Artie locked his wheels and lowered himself onto the floor. His legs dangled limply over the side of the stage. Impaired balance comes along with life as a paraplegic, so Artie's knuckles began to turn white as he gripped the edge of the stage tightly in order to keep himself from falling.

Sebastian had waited until Artie was situated before resuming their chat.

"I came to apologize. I didn't want this to happen- any of it."

"Then why start it?"

"I thought a little healthy competition between teams would make life in the-middle-of-nowhere, Ohio a little more interesting," Sebastian admitted. "I took it too far. I never meant for anybody to get hurt- especially Blaine- and I'm sorry that happened."

"Tell that to Blaine and his eye patch," Artie frowned. He realized that his attempt at being intimidating had very little impact from where he was helplessly seated on the floor, away from the freedoms that come with being in his chair.

"God, Artie, will you just let me talk?! I'm trying to be nice here!" Sebastian began to get frustrated.

"Fine. Go ahead," Artie conceded. "But let me ask you what it was you were trying to achieve by adding rock salt to that slushie in the first place?"

"I just wanted to ruin Kurt's day a little by ruining his clothes. I didn't expect Blaine to jump in front of him," Sebastian explained. "I'm sorry for hurting him like I did."

"It's not really my place to accept your apology on Blaine's behalf, but I appreciate your sincerity," Artie said, leaning all of his weight onto his left hand and lifting his right, extending it in hopes for a handshake.

"Truce?" Artie asked.

To that, Sebastian just laughed.

"Not a chance. The only thing you can offer me is super choice parking," Sebastian replied, the familiar snark once again present in his voice.

Artie returned his hand to the edge of the stage, taken aback by the complete 180-degree turn of Sebastian's attitude.

"We're still going to whoop your asses at Regionals, whether Blaine's on the stage with you or not. No mercy," Sebastian said, standing up from his seat.

As he turned to leave, Sebastian once again returned his attention to Artie.

"You need any help?"

Artie glanced between himself and his wheelchair, a bit shocked at Sebastian's offer, before silently shaking his head.

With that, Sebastian walked up the aisle and disappeared behind the curtain leading into the school's lobby, leaving Artie speechless in his wake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last of the scenes and dialogue from the "Michael" episode (3x11)! This chapter was pretty heavy with real dialogue and scenes, so my apologies if you've rewatched the episode recently and felt that this was repetitive.
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

_**SEBASTIAN** _

"Before we get down to business preparing for Regionals, we have an audition to hold," Sebastian informed his teammates, standing before them. "Everyone please welcome sophomore Watson Price."

The Warblers clapped politely as the doors to their choir room opened, revealing the auditionee. The boy had sunkissed skin, bright blue eyes, and coiffed honey blonde hair. He also happened to be sitting in a wheelchair- which neither Sebastian nor any of his friends had been expecting. Watson spun his chair around and grabbed the railing on the wall with one hand as he expertly descended the two stairs leading into the choir room.

"Uh, hi," the sophomore greeted the other boys with a thousand-watt smile. "My name's Watson, and I'm going to be singing 'Vienna' by Billy Joel."

Sebastian took his seat between Wes and David, the other upperclassmen elected to serve on the Warbler council. When he was situated, Sebastian signaled for Watson to begin.

Watson began his song, and instantly captivated all of the guys in the room. His song complemented his smooth voice very well, his tone was beautiful, and his talent was undeniable. Sebastian noticed that he wasn't terrible to look at either.

When he was finished, the boy received a standing ovation from all of the members in attendance. The smile he was wearing when he first entered the room had still yet to leave his face as he blushed at the positive attention the boys were showing him.

"Thank you, Watson, that was very nice," Sebastian said, sitting back down in his seat. "We will put the decision to a vote and let you know by the end of the week."

"Thank you for this opportunity. I look forward to hearing back," Watson replied before waving as he left the room.

One of the Warblers closed the door behind him and all of the attention was turned to Sebastian, Wes, and David.

"Well, I think that I speak for all of us when I say that we would be lucky to have someone as talented as he is on our team as we head into Regionals," Wes said, receiving head nods from most of the other members.

"All in favor of accepting the new member?" David asked, picking up the gavel on the table before him, preparing to close the vote.

Sebastian didn't know why he felt hesitant about this decision- especially because he was just as impressed by Watson's audition like everyone else- but he did. He knew that he had to speak up now or forever hold his peace.

"I don't think that this is the best idea," Sebastian worked up the courage to come out and say, shocking his teammates as being the sole naysayer.

"Why not?" David asked.

Sebastian shrugged.

"We've never had a guy in a chair on the team before. I think it will make us look less uniform if he's on stage with us. We won't look put-together," Sebastian said, noticing many of his teammates exchanging glances amongst one another.

"Well, there was a time when The Warblers didn't have any black members either. Or any gay ones, for that matter," David countered, raising an eyebrow at Sebastian. "The New Directions have a member in a wheelchair and it looks like things have been turning out pretty good for them."

Sebastian shook his head, still firm in his answer.

"Having Watson as a member will not get us a sympathy vote from the judges, it'll just distract them. We're not accepting him. I'm the Head Warbler, and my decision is final. No negotiations," Sebastian stood his ground. "Now, let's begin rehearsal before we waste any more time."

* * *

_**ARTIE** _

Artie sat in front of his laptop at the desk in his bedroom and opened Facebook in a web browser to see what his friends and family had been up to lately. He noticed that he had a friend request, so he clicked on the notification which led him to the profile of somebody he vaguely recognized.

As he scrolled through the person's account trying to place them, some subconscious part of him was reminded of last week when he and his friends had gone to Dalton to watch The Warbler's performance of "I Want You Back" …

 _Hold up. Could this be that kid in the wheelchair I rolled by that day in the hallway at Dalton?_ Artie thought to himself.

When he scrolled up to check if they had any mutual friends, Artie also saw that he had a message request from the boy.

Curious about what it had to say, Artie went ahead and opened it.

**Hi Artie,**

**My name is Watson Price and I'm currently a sophomore at Dalton Academy. I know you're probably weirded out right now and thinking, "Who is this kid, and why is he messaging me?!", but just hear me out! I am a T-12 paraplegic who loves to sing, and I have always been interested in joining The Warblers, but I didn't think someone in a wheelchair could compete in show choir. But then, last week I saw you with Blaine Anderson at the school, and after watching some videos of you and the New Directions online, I took it as a sign that I should try out. I auditioned today, and feel more confident than I have in a long time- and I have you to thank for that! I don't know their decision yet, but regardless of the outcome, I am grateful that I didn't decide to let my physical abilities hold me back.**

**Thanks for inspiring me to put myself out there!**

**Watson**

Artie's heart swelled as he read the sweet message from the boy. He hadn't realized that living his own life to the fullest, chair or not, would inspire others in the same position as him.

Artie typed a kind reply to the boy thanking him for the message and confirmed their Facebook friend status, noticing they had a mutual friend in Blaine.

 _How is Blaine?_ Artie wondered. His friend had yet to return to school after the slushie-to-the-eye incident and the surgery that followed.

Artie slipped his phone out of his pocket and dialed his friend's number, hoping he wasn't disturbing his recovery.

"Hey, Artie," Blaine answered, sounding happy to hear from his friend.

"How are you doing?" Artie asked, his voice full of concern.

"I'm hanging in there," Blaine replied. "How has it been since I've been gone? I heard something about you guys surrendering to The Warblers?!"

"Not surrendering, taking the high road," Artie corrected, remembering Puck's words from their last meeting with their rival team. "We were sick of the drama- it wasn't worth the cost of you getting hurt."

"Well I appreciate you all, and I'm always willing to take one for the team, though it will be a shame to have to watch Sebastian do Michael for Regionals," Blaine replied.

"Hey, I also had a quick question for you," Artie said, remembering one of the reasons why he had called in the first place.

"Ask away."

"What do you know about Watson Price?" Artie asked, reading the boy's name directly from his Facebook page.

"The kid that goes to Dalton? I've only talked to him a few times, but from what I hear, he's a nice guy. Super friendly," Blaine shared. "I think I had Latin class with him last year. Why do you ask?"

"Well he just Facebook messaged me saying that after watching our competition videos online, he decided to try out for The Warblers," Artie explained. "He said that seeing that there was another kid in a chair out there competing inspired him."

"Well, that's pretty awesome! How cool is it to think that you had an influence on somebody's life like that?" Blaine marveled.

"That _does_ make me feel good," Artie admitted with a small smile. "I don't know, I'm just nervous that they'll turn him away. You know how Sebastian is. It sounds like it took a lot for Watson to work up the courage to audition. I'd hate to see him get hurt."

"I guess we'll just have to hold out hope that Sebastian isn't as horrible a person as we think he is," Blaine replied. "We have to trust that he and the other members of the team have good morals and can look past the chair to recognize the talent."

Artie took a brief moment to think over what Blaine had said. Artie needed to have a little faith that Sebastian would do the right thing.

"You're right," Artie said eventually. "Thanks, Blaine. I appreciate your input on the situation, and I'm glad to hear that you're feeling better."

"No problem, dude," Blaine replied. "Hopefully I'll be back at school and Glee Club sometime next week. I miss you guys!"

"We miss you too," Artie assured him. "Keep resting and I'm sure you'll be good as new in no time."

The boys said their goodbyes and hung up the phone. Just as the call was over, the door to Artie's bedroom opened, revealing Sebastian.

Artie took in the other boy's presence before closing his laptop and turning away without saying a word. He was still holding a grudge about Blaine's injury, but it had begun to get harder to stay mad at him after their talk in the auditorium.

"Was that Blaine?" Sebastian asked, entering Artie's room uninvited and closing the door behind him.

Artie nodded, still avoiding eye contact as if Sebastian was Medusa and could turn him to stone.

"How is he?"

Artie contemplated giving a snarky response but thought the better of it. He could hear in Sebastian's voice how truly remorseful he was about causing Blaine's injury.

"He had surgery yesterday. Hopefully, he'll be back at school next week, but he's gonna be okay."

"Good," Sebastian breathed a sigh of relief.

"Did you come in here to tell me about Watson Price's audition?" Artie asked casually as he vacated the spot at his desk and rolled over to his dresser to fetch some sweats to change into.

Sebastian's jaw dropped at Artie's question.

"How- How did you…?"

"There's only so many teenage wheelchair users in Western Ohio, Sebastian. We're a very tight-knit bunch," Artie only half-lied, finally looking up to meet Sebastian's eyes.

For somebody who enjoys making other peoples' lives miserable a relatively large portion of the time, Sebastian was often clearly apologetic afterward. Seeing the familiar guilt-stricken look on Sebastian's face Artie could tell that Watson's future with The Warblers was not what he had been hoping for.

"So you cut him," Artie concluded, feeling disappointed, but not at all surprised. Not even giving Sebastian a moment to defend himself, Artie continued. "Could he sing?"

"Y-yes, but-"

"Then what'd you do that for?! You cut him because he can't walk?" Artie asked, anger beginning to become present in his voice. "Ableist mindsets like yours are exactly why those of us in chairs are hesitant to put ourselves out there and just go about our days like a normal freakin' person! When will you realize that people like Watson and I and people like you are more alike than we are different?!"

"Artie, I-" Sebastian tried to interject, but Artie was furious.

"No! Society wants to pity and alienate people with disabilities every single day of our lives for what makes us different, but you know what? What makes me different is the best thing about me," he stated. "Because of it, I learned grit, determination, and empathy- something that you are very much lacking."

Artie and Sebastian both sat in uncomfortable silence for the next several minutes. Sebastian had taken a seat on the edge of Artie's bed and was trying to give the boy ample time to calm down before he tried to speak again.

Eventually, Artie broke the silence, still unable to look Sebastian in the eye.

"Watson is more than qualified to join the team, correct?"

Sebastian hesitated before giving a small nod.

"Then you need to let him join. If we're going to get legal, then ableist mindsets like yours prohibiting him from joining a school-sponsored club on the basis of disability is just one of the many, many reasons the Price family should sue Dalton Academy for violating the Every Student Succeeds Act," Artie pivoted his chair and lifted a hefty law book off of one of his bookshelves. He flipped through the pages before finding the amendment to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act which guarantees equal opportunity for people with disabilities, full participation in society, and the tools for overall independent success.

Sebastian raised his eyebrows as he read the paragraph Artie was pointing to.

"Dalton is a prison for somebody in a chair. There are no ramps and way too many stairs. I nearly face-planted trying to make it from the car to the door because of the rocky driveway. It was probably the least accessible educational building I've been in in my entire life," Artie explained. "Watson's family could potentially have a serious case on their hands."

Now that Artie had adequately calmed down, he knew that the most effective way to get his point across was to switch gears from rage to patience in order to educate his future step-brother on the issues that he faces every day as a disabled teen.

"Are you afraid of working the chair into choreography? You think it'll 'throw off the whole dynamic' or that it's 'depressing'?" Artie asked, switching the topic of conversation back to Watson Price's impending spot on The Warblers.

Sebastian's silence answered for him.

"Yeah, that's what I thought," Artie shook his head, remembering back to those hurtful words Dakota Stanley had uttered when the New Directions hired him to choreograph their routine freshman year. "I've heard that one before too."

Silence ensued once again as Artie thought about what to say next.

"In the ten years I've been in this chair, I've realized that the list of things that I can't do pales in comparison to the list of what I can do. I don't need to walk or jump or tap dance to be happy! I know that my worth isn't based on my abilities, and the moment you begin to see that too, I promise, your outlook on life will change for the better."

"Ten years?" Sebastian asked with a confused look on his face after a moment, having seemingly ignored the rest of what Artie had said.

"Hold up... You know I haven't always been paralyzed, right?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leaving you with what could be considered a little bit of a cliffhanger! ;)
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

_**ARTIE** _

"Yes?" Sebastian replied, his answer sounding more like a question than a statement. Artie could tell that the thought had never really crossed his mind before.

Most of Artie's friends had known him before the accident. They remembered when he was an athletic and nimble boy, who, although small for his age, managed to beat all of the other kids at running races on the playground during recess.

To Sebastian, however, Artie was just the kid in the wheelchair. Always had been.

Artie sighed.

He was hesitant to divulge into talking about his past, not only because it brings up painful memories for him, but also because Sebastian was still on probation in his book. Sometimes he was sweet, sometimes he was sour. It certainly kept things interesting, but Artie found never knowing which side of Sebastian he was going to be met with in the moment confusing and daunting. They weren't close enough for him to feel comfortable informing Sebastian about something so personal, but in the back of his mind, Artie knew that maybe if he enlightened Sebastian on the events of his past, he would be more empathetic towards other people with disabilities- namely, Watson Price.

 _Here goes nothing_ , Artie thought to himself, taking a deep breath before speaking.

"I actually used to be a… I was a gymnast," Artie began, eliciting a snort from the taller boy.

"A gymnast?! That's the gayest shit I've ever heard," Sebastian laughed.

"Oh, that's rich, coming from you!" Artie retorted, immediately regretting his decision to open up to Sebastian.

Then he realized that the only way he was going to effectively get Sebastian's attention was to show him.

Artie wheeled over to his television and popped a compilation of home movies into the DVD player. When he pressed play, a video from one of Artie's gymnastics meets began to play on the screen. The two boys watched in silence as a young Artie flipped and jumped all around the blue spring floor. Off screen, two parents could be heard cheering on their son. Artie and Sebastian watched a few more videos of him competing on various events before Artie hit the pause button.

"Uh, my dad's super into film. We have dozens of DVDs with all kinds of home movies on them. I think I get my love of directing from him," Artie said sheepishly.

Sebastian was left uncharacteristically speechless by the videos, so Artie took that as his cue to keep going.

"As I was saying, I was a pretty decent competitive gymnast back in my glory days," Artie and Sebastian both knew that he was being humble and downplaying his talent- in reality, Artie had been one of the best in his age category in all of the Midwest.

"One day when I was eight, I was at practice and my coach finally let me do a new dismount off of the high bar. I had been begging him for weeks to let me try it, and he finally gave in. I nailed it on the first try, and I was so excited to get home and show my dad the video. I was over the moon that day," Artie remembered with a quiet laugh and a melancholy shake of his head. "On our way home, my mom and I were sitting at a red light. I was rewatching that video of my new skill over and over again. I was so proud of myself."

Artie had been looking down at where his hands were clasped in his lap, but now he glanced up and met Sebastian's wide grey-blue eyes. The boy's face was as serious as Artie had ever seen it, and he gave a barely noticeable nod to encourage Artie to continue.

"The light turned green, so we began to go, but then out of nowhere, a pickup truck ran a red light and smashed right into the back seat on the passenger's side of the car- where I was sitting," Artie explained. "My mom had a pretty nasty concussion, but other than that, she was fine. I… I just remember feeling this… pop," Artie's voice cracked as he shuddered at the memory. "It didn't hurt, it just… felt like something had disconnected inside of me, I guess. I began to feel a little tingly- like the pins and needles you get when your foot falls asleep."

Sebastian nodded again in understanding.

"I remember screaming as loud as I could but it seemed like nobody could hear me. I was covered in glass, and I had shards of what was once the window embedded deep in my thighs. That should've hurt like a bitch, and when it didn't, I realized that I couldn't feel anything at all. I punched my legs as hard as I could and tried to kick them, but all of a sudden my body wasn't doing what I was telling it to do."

Artie pulled his phone out of his pocket and opened his photo album and scrolled way back until he found the photo he was looking for. He handed it to Sebastian who winced and bit his lower lip as he took in the powerful photo.

"You mean to tell me that you were _in_ there?!" Sebastian asked with disbelief as he zoomed in on the photo of the jumbled heap of metal that once resembled a car.

Artie nodded as Sebastian handed his phone back to him and he continued with his story.

"Then the adrenaline must've worn off and I probably passed out or something, because I don't remember anything else after that. I guess, eventually, the fire department must've shown up and cut me out of the car before taking me to the hospital," Artie said. "They sent me into emergency surgery, and that's when they discovered that my T-10 vertebrae had shattered. The doctors put all of this metal hardware in my spine to hold me together."

Artie pulled up some more photos from back then and allowed Sebastian to scroll through them. The first was one of him in the ICU right after surgery. He was wearing a neckbrace and breathing with the assistance of a ventilator. Tubes and wires came out of Artie's body from every angle, and he looked so tiny laying there in that bed.

Sebastian swiped to the next photo which appeared to be of Artie's x-ray scan after the surgery. It was easy to distinguish the rods and screws from bone in the image.

"Artie Abrams the Bionic Man!" Sebastian joked, lightening the mood a little and causing Artie to blush.

The next several photos included one of little Artie, little Griffin, and little Ella all squeezed into the hospital bed giving the camera a "thumbs up", and one of a man (Sebastian assumed that it was Artie's dad) feeding him spoonfuls of lime Jell-O.

"I was in the hospital for several weeks, then I was transferred to an inpatient rehab facility. That was where I learned to get dressed by myself, move from my chair to my bed, shower… all that good stuff that I was going to have to do differently for the rest of my life," Artie explained. "I was always a scrawny little dude, but thanks to gymnastics, I already had super-human upper body strength, which made it easier to relearn daily tasks without using my lower half. I spent so much time out of school that I had to repeat third grade, hence why I'm eighteen, yet only a Junior."

Looking over Sebastian's shoulder, Artie smiled as he reached a picture of him sitting on a yoga ball to work on his balance during a physical therapy session. The boy in the photograph stuck his tongue out at the camera.

"I hated that freakin' ball," Artie laughed as Sebastian handed his phone back to him.

After the brief light-hearted moment, Artie's mood turned serious once again.

"We had to completely remodel our home to be a safe place for me to live. All of the carpets were ripped up and replaced with hardwood floors, the doorways were widened, and we converted the den into my bedroom since I could no longer get upstairs. My parents installed ramps and built a bathroom add-on to help me be independent. But it wasn't only my life that was changed forever because somebody had decided to text and drive- my family's lives were altered too," Artie pointed out. "Because all of my parents' attention was on me, Griffin began to fall behind in school. My mom struggled with survivor's guilt after she escaped the crash mostly unharmed. The emotional and financial stress of having a handicapped child took a toll on my parents' marriage. They got a divorce two years later, and even though they would never blame me, I know it was because of what I put them through. That's what bothers me the most about all of this- I can live with being unable to walk, but the fact that my injury caused my siblings to grow up in a broken home? I'll never forgive myself for that."

"It's not your fault," Sebastian said softly, as he shook his head. "Parents are weird. They hide things from their kids for years until one day they just can't anymore. Your parents were probably having problems long before you realized. But you didn't cause their divorce, you hear me?"

Artie paused for a second before managing a small nod. He was momentarily stunned by Sebastian's surprisingly effective attempt to comfort him. Maybe he was capable of empathy after all.

"I've learned to adapt to challenges pretty easily, and after a decade of being paralyzed, I'm more self-sufficient now than I ever was as an able body. It just sucks to be looked down upon all the time just because I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, you know?"

Sebastian nodded silently, clearly deep in thought. Artie could tell that he was trying to put himself in his position.

"You'll really never walk again?" he asked quietly, looking up at Artie's face. He could see that Sebastian was really trying his hardest to wrap his mind around Artie's situation. The other boy just shrugged.

"I mean… I don't know what the future holds for biomedical engineering, but as of right now, I'm not getting my hopes up," Artie's mind briefly flickered back to that day freshman year when Tina had produced packets of paperwork practically stating that spinal cord injuries would be cured within his lifetime and that soon he'd be hopping around like Grandpa Joe from _Charlie and the Chocolate Factory_ after Charlie finds the golden ticket. "I go to physical therapy weekly, and I stretch every night before bed, but it's been ten years since I've walked normally, and most of my muscles have atrophied by now."

Artie could see that Sebastian still didn't quite understand what he was trying to say. He decided to try a different approach.

"Here, put your hand flat on your leg, palm-down," Artie instructed, demonstrating what he meant.

Confused, Sebastian did what he was told.

"Now tuck your middle finger under your palm but leave your other fingers where they are," Artie said. "Now try to lift your ring finger up."

Artie watched Sebastian struggle for a moment before giving up, admitting defeat.

" _That's_ what my paralysis feels like," Artie concluded. "No matter how hard I try at physical therapy, the outcome never changes because the message my brain is trying to send to my legs gets lost along the way. I'm a complete paraplegic, which means that I have no sensation or movement below my point of injury, which, for me, is around the middle of my back."

"Now, my life feels like just a small series of memories made before the accident, and a much larger collection of those made after," Artie continued. "I'm a completely different person now than I was back then. I had to mature pretty fast, and it sucked. A lot. But for better or for worse, this chair is a part of me. It's made me who I am, and I happen to like the guy I've become."

Artie saw the look in Sebastian's eyes shift as he began to look at him with this newfound admiration, causing Artie to blush.

"Thank you for sharing that with me. Everything," Sebastian said honestly, putting a comforting hand on the armrest of Artie's chair. "I know that must've been hard for you to tell me, seeing as though we're not exactly the best of friends, and I… thanks."

Artie shrugged and managed a small smile.

He only hoped that by sharing his own story, the other boy would reconsider his decision to cut Watson from The Warblers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

_**SEBASTIAN** _

Artie's words had really affected Sebastian for some reason that he couldn't quite put his finger on. The Watson situation, Dalton not being accessible for someone in a chair, hearing the story, and seeing pictures of Artie's accident… Sebastian was definitely viewing the world through a new perspective now.

He was still thinking about it when he strode into the Dalton choir room the next day for Warblers practice. After socializing with his friends for a few minutes as everyone filtered in after a long day of classes, Sebastian called for the Warblers' attention.

"Hi everybody. I would just like to apologize for the behavior I exhibited yesterday," Sebastian said. "What I said after Watson's audition was horrible, and I retract my statements completely. If it's not too late- and if it's okay with you all- I would love to offer him a spot on the team ahead of our upcoming Regional competition."

Faces lit up around the room and several cheers could be heard. The boys had all really wanted Watson to join, and they were all happy that Sebastian came around.

"Not that I'm complaining, but what's with the sudden change of heart?" David asked the Head Warbler.

Sebastian gave a small smile and shrugged.

"I had a talk with a friend of mine and realized how harmful my views on the situation were. I should have never said that stuff. Watson's got a lot of talent, and I'm excited to get the chance to perform alongside him."

"Well, I'm glad you came around," David said, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Yeah, me too," Sebastian replied.

* * *

Sebastian didn't have lacrosse practice after school today, so he was able to get home to Lima at a decent hour. He showered and changed into sweats and a t-shirt before strolling down to the kitchen to make himself something to eat. Even though he was home earlier than usual, he had still missed dinner and was left to fend for himself when it came to making his meal. Sebastian opted for some microwavable Easy Mac, and after scarfing down his meal, he then retrieved an apple out of the refrigerator before heading to Artie's bedroom.

Sebastian still hadn't stopped thinking about the conversation he and Artie had had the day before. For the first time since he had moved into the Abrams' house just over a month ago, Sebastian began to really take notice of the childhood photos displayed around the house. He stopped several times in the hallway to take in the smiling faces in the mismatched frames that hung on the walls. There were various sports photos of Griffin from over the years, as well as some baby pictures of Ella. Sebastian noticed plenty of photos of Artie prior to his accident, including a few of him from gymnastics meets where he stood proudly on a podium with a gold medal around his neck.

After last night's talk, Sebastian had also realized that the bedroom he now occupied had probably once belonged to Artie before the accident. Was it strange that he now felt somewhat guilty for inhabiting what surely was once the boy's safe space during his childhood? Sebastian wasn't sure.

He finally made his way to Artie's closed door and turned the knob without warning.

Artie was laying on his bed, sprawled out over the comforter, playing a round of Halo on his PlayStation. When he saw Sebastian enter the room, Artie paused his game and set down his controller.

"Hey, Puck, I gotta take a break for a little bit," Artie told the friend he was playing with. The boy on the other end of the line must have been understanding because they said their goodbyes and Artie took off the headset he was wearing.

"Do you make it a habit of entering people's bedrooms without knocking, or is that courtesy only reserved for me?" Artie asked, scooting backwards so that he was able to adequately lean against the headboard.

Sebastian ignored Artie's question and walked over to his bedside table, picking up one of the three prescription bottles sitting there.

"This is a pretty intense cocktail you're taking," Sebastian commented as he inspected each bottle's label.

"Well, it does the job," Artie replied casually, still wondering what Sebastian was even doing in his room in the first place.

"I've got a few things to tell you," Sebastian said, almost as if he had read Artie's mind.

"Okay, shoot," Artie replied, hoping that whatever he had to say wouldn't take long so that he could get back to kicking Puck's ass at Halo.

"I talked to The Warblers today and apologized. I told them that I had been out of line yesterday, and if Watson still wants the spot on the team, it's his," Sebastian informed him. "I guess Watson has you and your little speech to thank for that."

Sebastian could see that Artie was having a hard time suppressing the grin threatening to appear on his face at this news.

"That was all you," Artie replied. "I'm just glad I could help you to see the light."

Artie's words may have been humble, but the cocky smile on his face simply said: " _I told you so"_. Sebastian stuck his tongue out at the boy before taking a seat in Artie's vacant chair.

He had never actually sat in one before, and Artie watched in amusement as Sebastian pivoted back and forth to get a feel for it before attempting a trick or two. He went for a wheelie, but leaned too far back and fell backwards, smacking his head on the hardwood floor.

Artie dissolved into a fit of contagious laughter, and even though his head was throbbing, Sebastian giggled too.

"Respect the chair!" Artie playfully scolded the taller boy, who set the wheelchair right-side-up before taking a seat at the foot of Artie's bed.

"You make it look so easy," Sebastian told him in defeat as he rubbed the goose egg that was beginning to form on the back of his head.

"I've got ten years of practice, remember?" Artie replied, using his hands to move his legs over to give Sebastian more space.

A silent moment passed, and Sebastian internally debated whether or not he actually wanted to go through with what he came here to tell Artie. After what Artie had shared with him yesterday- how personal it was- Sebastian felt like it was only fair for him to do the same in return.

"I… Uh… Well, since you gave me your childhood trauma story in great detail last night, I did a lot of thinking and decided that I should probably tell you a little about me," Sebastian said nervously.

He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants as he prepared to share the most intimate part of himself.

"Well, I guess I should start at the beginning," Sebastian began. "I was born in France, so I have dual citizenship there and here in the US. My mother, Sylvie, was French, and she and my father met while he was studying abroad in his senior year of college. He came back to the States, completed his last semester, graduated, and hopped on the first flight to Paris. They got married, did the deed, and then there I was nine months later."

Artie cringed at the last sentence, and Sebastian let out a low laugh.

"We lived in Paris until I was nine. My mother was a fashion designer, so that's where her heart was. And my father was willing to do anything to make her happy. He put off his plans of becoming a lawyer and became a stay-at-home dad for a while. Mama was always in her studio and I didn't see her much, so that's how my dad and I became so close. We… uh, Artie?"

"Yeah?"

"Um… your foot…?" Sebastian had a confused look on his face and pointed to Artie's leg.

Artie looked down and saw his left foot tremoring. This was a normal side effect that came with the spinal cord injury that he'd gotten used to over the years, but he could understand how the twitching could be bewildering to someone first witnessing it.

"It's a spasm," Artie explained, reaching to his bedside table for a glass of water and the container of Baclofen pills, popping the right dosage into his mouth and washing it down with a sip of water. "I had PT today and when I push myself too far, this is what happens. It's my body's way of telling me to slow down. The pills help, but you've got about twenty minutes before I pass out. So, continue."

"Right. Um, where was I?"

"Living in Paris," Artie supplied.

"Ah, yes," Sebastian remembered. "My parents never fought and hardly disciplined me. I got away with way more things than I should have, which, now that I think about it, explains a lot. Anyways, I just thought that life was the coolest. Boy, I was naïve."

"My mother was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer when I was eight," Sebastian sighed. "She knew that the odds of surviving were stacked against her, so she refused treatment. She retired from designing and was spending a lot more time at home- I remember that. We traveled a lot; we went to Australia, and China, and Iceland… I didn't know why we were doing any of this, but I knew we were making memories. My parents didn't tell me that she was sick until she was on her deathbed."

Artie's face had been solemn as he listened to Sebastian's story, but at the last sentence he let out an audible gasp. Divorce was one thing, but death was another. At least his parents were still friendly and his father was just a couple hours away. Artie couldn't fathom what it would be like to lose a parent so young.

"It was Valentine's Day, and I woke up early to make strawberry pancakes," Sebastian remembered, looking off to the side instead of meeting Artie's eyes. "I wanted to do it all by myself so that it would be a surprise. When I was done, I loaded them on a tray and entered my parents' room. There, I found my parents both crying. I asked what was wrong. And they told me."

Artie's face had a look of concern as he hugged himself tightly as Sebastian recounted the obviously painful memory.

"We stayed in bed- the three of us- all morning, and then at exactly noon, my mother died," Sebastian's voice cracked and his eyes filled up with tears that he tried to blink away. A single drop escaped, though, and he was quick to wipe it away with the back of his hand.

Sebastian didn't hesitate to continue on with his story after his brief show of emotion.

"A year later, we moved to Ohio because everything was new. There were no reminders of her anywhere. I didn't want to leave everything I'd ever known, but it hurt less than the memories did. My dad was so depressed after she died… I don't think I ever saw him truly happy again until he met your mom."

For the first time in his life, Artie Abrams was left speechless.

"Sebastian… I'm so sorry," Artie said eventually, to which Sebastian shrugged.

"That's life, man. A lot of us get dealt a shitty hand of cards and there's not much we can do about it. I mean, look at the two us. Life gave us crap from the beginning, but it's made us into the people we are today."

Artie nodded and Sebastian noticed his eyelids begin to get heavier. His muscle relaxant must be kicking in.

"You're a good listener, Artie," Sebastian said honestly with a small, grateful smile, as he stood up from the foot of Artie's bed before joking: "That was like the therapy session I've always needed but never got, so... thanks."

"Well, you caught me at a good time," Artie joked, haphazardly gesturing to the medication on the bedside table. "I'm quieter when I'm doped up."

Sensing that he was a few minutes away from the drug-induced sleep, Artie crawled under the covers and took off his glasses.

Sebastian turned to go, and when he was halfway to the door, Artie spoke up again.

"You're not really as terrible as people think you are."

Sebastian didn't turn around, but he let out a small chuckle at Artie's slurred words.

"Goodnight, Artie," he responded.

"Goodnight, Sebastian."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian mentioned once on the show that he had lived in France at one point in time, so I decided to include that in the story!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

_**SEBASTIAN** _

When Sebastian heard the news, he felt like his heart had stopped beating.

Dave Karofsky had never been a friend of his- hell, they hardly knew each other, save for the fact that they were both regulars at Scandals, the local gay bar in Lima.

But the fact that they weren't even close enough to be considered acquaintances didn't help Sebastian feel any less guilty about Dave trying to kill himself.

From what Sebastian had heard, some of the kids from Dave's new school had seen him sitting with Kurt at Breadstix one night and outed him to everyone. They started to torment him and post awful things about him online, and he eventually had reached his breaking point. Rumor has it that he tried to hang himself but his father found him in time and called an ambulance. Supposedly, he is in the hospital under a 72-hour watch, but he'll be okay.

Sebastian couldn't help but feel sorry for the boy. Luckily, Sebastian had gotten the chance to come out on his own terms and he had a father who loved and accepted him. He wasn't sure what Dave's home life was like, but Sebastian had certainly lucked out that Dalton had such a strictly enforced no bullying policy- he never had to worry if people were going to ridicule him because of his sexual orientation.

He also felt a bit guilty because, in the back of his mind, he knew that he had played a part in pushing Dave to that edge. He definitely could remember a time or two when he had said a snarky comment to the boy in passing about his weight or appearance.

Sebastian had not been in a good headspace after hearing the news from another Scandals regular earlier in the morning, so he had decided to cancel Warblers practice for the afternoon and text his lacrosse coach to say that he wasn't feeling well and wouldn't be at practice today. He just needed to go home and think things through… and maybe look to his newfound resident therapist, Artie, for some guidance. Sebastian was initially hesitant to admit it, but he realized that Artie was pretty cool once they started spending time together, and found that he enjoyed the boy's quick-witted humor and sage advice.

For the first time that he could remember, Sebastian had returned from school before Artie did. The boy had Glee Club after school and wouldn't be home until dinner time, so Sebastian retreated upstairs to wait. With the parents at work and Ella and Artie still at school, Sebastian had the house to himself. He decided to hang up his uniform, and take a much needed steamy shower in hopes that it would calm him down a little bit until Artie returned.

When he emerged from the shower 45 minutes later, he felt a little better, but still pretty gloomy. It was assuring to know that Artie would be back from rehearsal any minute now.

Sebastian changed into his usual loungewear attire of a t-shirt and joggers and headed downstairs to wait for the rest of the family to come home. He was laid out on the couch mindlessly scrolling through his social media feeds when he heard the garage door open and the familiar sound of Artie wheeling up the wooden ramp to get inside.

"Artie, wait up!" Sebastian called as he jogged through the kitchen to catch up with the shorter boy and followed him down the hallway that led to his bedroom.

"What's up?" Artie asked, opening the door to his bedroom and wheeling in, Sebastian not far behind.

"Did you hear?"

"Did I hear about what?"

"About Dave. Karofsky."

"Oh. Um, yeah. I did. It's terrible."

"I know. I've been sick to my stomach all day thinking about it."

Artie unhooked his backpack from the handles of his chair and gave Sebastian a confused look before setting it on the floor beside his desk.

"You know Karofsky?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah. I ran into him a few times… out on the town," Sebastian replied, wincing and scratching the back of his head.

He could see the wheels turning in Artie's mind as he linked the pieces of the story together. His eyes lit up and his mouth formed an "O" shape when he realized that Sebastian had been referring to nights at the gay bar.

"I can't imagine what he must have been going through to get to that point," Artie said, shaking his head. He locked his wheels and moved from his chair to his bed, patting the spot beside him inviting Sebastian to take a seat.

Sebastian accepted the invitation, sitting down and leaning up against the headboard.

"He made my life a living hell for years… I find it hard to feel sympathy for him," Artie confessed. "Along with hurting himself, he was ready and willing to hurt everyone who loved him. I feel sorry for his family. I know how an event like this could tear a family apart."

Sebastian could tell that Artie had been wrestling with his thoughts all day as well, trying to make sense of the situation. He could tell that Artie wanted to feel sad about Dave's suicide attempt, but couldn't bring himself to.

"Did I tell you that one time Karofsky and his boys cornered me in the hallway and dumped eighteen slushies on me at once? My body temperature plummeted, it took me hours to stop shivering, and I swear my chair still smells like cherry syrup," Artie shared. "But you know what? Through it all, I never once thought about suicide. I never considered ending my life because I had come too close to getting my life taken from me."

Sebastian glanced over at Artie and he could see that he was beginning to fight off angry tears.

"I know now that life is a gift that shouldn't be taken for granted. High school is just four years of our lives. It gets better," Artie continued. "That's what I told myself all those years when people were bullying me. And I was right. I would've missed so much if I had quit when things got hard."

Sebastian gulped as Artie finally turned his head so that their eyes could meet. Sebastian noticed that when Artie was sad or deep in thought about something, his normally bright blue eyes got darker.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm glad his dad found him in time," Artie was quick to add. "I choose to believe that he has changed for the better since he left McKinley. Once he became honest about who he was."

" _So how do you get a guy to like you?"_

_Sebastian was bent over a jukebox selecting a song when he heard the question. Glancing over his left shoulder, he scoffed when he saw who the voice belonged to._

" _You? Get a guy? Please," came his cold response paired with a cocky smile._

" _Why? What's… wrong with me?" he had asked as his face fell._

" _Well, first off, you are about a hundred pounds overweight. Quit waxing your eyebrows- you look like Liberace. In fact, just stay in the closet, buddy."_

_Sebastian clapped Dave on the shoulder and walked away, but not before he noticed the hurt look on the other boy's face._

Sebastian's lower lip began to quiver as he listened to Artie's words and thought back to that night at Scandals. Hearing how Dave had made Artie feel struck a chord with him, as he probably made Dave feel the same way. The only difference between the two outcomes was that Dave wasn't as mentally strong as Artie.

"I…" Sebastian began, searching for the right words to accurately describe how he was feeling about himself. "I'm an awful person," he sighed eventually, unable to meet Artie's eyes when he felt the boy turn his head.

"You're not…" Artie began to reassure him before realizing that, until a week or two ago, he would have agreed.

"I am," Sebastian insisted. "I am a jerk to everybody- Dave, Watson, Blaine, you… I want to change. I can't be this person anymore."

"So then change," Artie replied simply.

"It's not that easy," Sebastian shook his head.

"Sure it is. Just apologize to those you feel like you have wronged and change your ways," Artie said. "I'll consider this your apology to me, so apology accepted. There, one down."

Sebastian took a deep breath and thought about what Artie had to say. Even though the fix was simple, he knew that Artie was right. Apologies couldn't change everything, but they were certainly good starting points.

He realized that he should probably get started soon because he had a long list of people to patch things up with.

* * *

The next day, after completing several of the apologies on his list, Sebastian felt like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.

Sebastian had sent out a group text to several members of the New Directions that morning asking them to meet him at The Lima Bean after school for a chat. He was nervously anticipating how the conversation would go down but also knew that it was one that needed to happen.

Sebastian had arrived at the cafe a little earlier than he had specified. He grabbed his usual hot latte and started on his homework as he waited for the McKinley kids to show. It wasn't long before he heard the sounds of footsteps behind him accompanied by the squeak of Artie's chair.

"Let me break it down for you," Santana said right off the bat as she took a seat across from Sebastian at the table. From one bitch to another, all of this vicious underhanded crap has got to stop."

"Exactly," Sebastian agreed as he closed his notebook. "That's why I called you. I'm done with the blackmail, the playing dirty, and the fighting. I want The Warblers to win fair and square."

Santana, Rachel, Artie, Blaine, and Kurt exchanged looks amongst one another, and all looked surprised to hear him say this (except for Artie, who had helped Sebastian come up with this plan last night).

"As you said a few weeks ago, we should be supportive of each other," Sebastian said. "With everything that's happened lately, I think it's important that we treat one another with kindness and respect. That is why The Warblers are going to collect donations for Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation during our set. Win, lose or draw, we're going to dedicate our performance to Dave Karofsky. I thought you might want to join us."

The New Directions exchanged looks with each other once again. Even Artie was shocked to hear this news.

"Wait for the punch. You know it's coming," Kurt said as he leaned over to Blaine.

"No. Not this time," Sebastian said, shaking his head. He glanced at Artie who gave him a barely noticeable nod of encouragement. "For too long I have treated everything like a big joke. It's all fun and games until it's not. I'm willing to look at my past actions and make changes going forward."

"Well, I think that I speak for all of us when I say that we appreciate the initiative and we're glad that you have come around," Artie said, looking behind him at his friends. "The New Directions look forward to going head-to-head with The Warblers this weekend at Regionals."

Hearing all they needed to, the New Directions turned to leave. But then, Sebastian remembered that he still had yet to give the most important apology of them all.

Blaine's.

"Hey," Sebastian said, putting his hand on Blaine's arm before he could walk away. "Hang back for a second?"

Blaine nodded to his friends, telling them to leave without him as he took a seat in the chair that Santana vacated.

"Blaine, I am sorry about your eye," Sebastian said, getting right to the point.

"That means nothing to me," Blaine was quick to dismiss the apology, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Just give me a chance. I have no excuses, other than a lame prank that got completely out of control. I never meant for anybody to get hurt. Especially you."

The hard expression Blaine was wearing visibly softened.

"I'm truly sorry, Blaine. For ruining the friendship we had formed all because I was jealous and petty and overly competitive. It wasn't cool for me to act that way. I hope you'll forgive me," Sebastian said, the look on his face showed how sincere he was.

Blaine was silent for a moment before nodding.

"Thank you for saying that, Sebastian. I accept your apology, and I look forward to beating you at Regionals. Fair and square, just like you said."

Sebastian breathed a sigh of relief as he nodded and stuck his hand out for a handshake.

For the first time in a long time, Sebastian felt completely guilt-free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I used some direct quotes and scenes from 3x14 for this chapter :)
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

_**ARTIE** _

"Make sure you're home by five," Nancy said to her children as Artie and Ella headed out the door that Friday morning. "We're taking a family trip to Westerville tonight to support Sebastian at his pre-Regionals showcase, then we're going to grab a late dinner in the city."

Hearing this, Artie stopped dead in his tracks.

"What?!" Artie asked, spinning his chair around to face his mother.

"Yes, The Warblers are hosting a little performance tonight for all of the parents who aren't able to make the trip here to Lima this weekend to watch the competition," Nancy explained. "Harrison and I decided it would be good for our whole family to attend."

"No! We can't! I can't!" Artie began to protest.

"And why is that?" Nancy asked with a hand on her hip. "Sebastian was present at your Sectionals, wasn't he?"

" _But he wasn't seated with the family!"_ Artie wanted to yell back.

Artie figured out that he couldn't go into detail about why he didn't want to be seen at Dalton without opening a whole new can of worms regarding why he and Sebastian had chosen to keep their family life a secret from their respective teams.

Artie sighed, realizing that this was a battle with his mother he was going to lose. He nodded before rolling down the ramp to enter the garage so that he could drive Ella and himself to school.

After transferring into the driver's seat and stowing his wheelchair in the back, Artie pulled out his phone and sent a panicked text to Sebastian letting him know their parents' plans for the night:

**SOS- Parents are making me come to your showcase at Dalton tonight! What should we do?!**

Sebastian was quick to reply:

**Easy. If anyone asks, say you're there to support your BFF Watson the Wheelchair Warbler.**

Sebastian's response was calm, and he even used the alliterative phrase they had begun to use when referring to Watson. It took a lot more for Sebastian to get nervous than it did Artie, so having Sebastian there to reassure him that everything was going to be okay was comforting.

Despite Sebastian's rock-solid plan, Artie knew he was going to be anxious about the showcase all day.

* * *

Just as they were told, Artie and Ella were home and ready to go by five o'clock. They all climbed into Harrison's Porsche and before they knew it, they were on the road to Westerville.

Two hours later, they had arrived.

Harrison retrieved Artie's chair from the trunk and handed him the pieces so that he could assemble it. When he was finished, Artie carefully lowered himself down into the chair from the car that was much taller than he was used to. Once he was safely in the comfort of his chair, he remembered the gravel problem.

"Hey, Ma, would you mind pushing me until we get inside?" Artie asked. "The rocks are hard for me to maneuver over."

There was a point in time where Artie would have been embarrassed to ask for help, but now, he realized that, even though he could do many tasks on his own, there were still some instances where the wisest solution was to ask for assistance. This was one of those times.

Nancy was quick to nod and position herself behind her son and guide him into the building, working with Ella and Harrison to lift him over those two pesky steps.

A crowd was beginning to form in Dalton's Senior Commons, which was where the performance would be taking place, and the Abrams-Smythe family took their seats, Artie parking his chair beside his sister at the end of the row.

As they waited for the crowd to die down and the performance to begin, Artie decided that now would be a good time to find the restroom, praying that this inaccessible school would have a stall big enough to accommodate him and his chair.

Artie informed the family on where he was going, then set off to find the bathroom. Before he could leave the room, however, he heard somebody call his name from behind him.

"Artie?"

Not recognizing the voice, Artie spun around and was met with the tanned skin and blonde haired boy he had seen on the computer screen.

"I'm Watson Price," the boy stuck out his hand and gave Artie one of his signature smiles. "After all of our Facebook messages, it's so nice to finally meet you in person!"

Artie returned the favor.

"Hey, man! It's nice to meet you too," Artie replied. "I'm glad you made the team. Have you been enjoying it?"

Watson nodded eagerly.

"It's been great so far. I wish I had tried out last year!"

Artie smiled.

"I'm glad to hear that," He said. "Well, good luck tonight, and tomorrow at the competition, too! I'm excited to see what you've got!"

The boys said their goodbyes, and Artie was once again on his way to the restroom. He found one just down the hall (and it did have a handicap accessible stall- praise!), did his business, and was returning to his seat when he was stopped again by someone calling his name from behind.

This time, he could have recognized that voice anywhere.

"Hey, Artie!" Blaine greeted him, clearly surprised to see his friend at his old stomping grounds. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh! I just came to see Watson perform for the first time," Artie replied, using the excuse that Sebastian had conjured up for him. Artie hoped that he didn't sound as nervous as he felt.

"Artie, the show's about to start, you should come back and sit with us," Nancy said, suddenly appearing behind her son. She then noticed his friend. "Oh, hey, Blaine! How are you?"

"Hi, Ms. Abrams, I'm fine. Just came for a visit to see some old friends and see what we're up against tomorrow," He replied.

"Well, come over and sit with us! We have an empty chair in our row," Nancy waved them over.

Artie's stomach turned and he felt the sudden urge to throw up as he and Blaine followed his mother.

If Blaine was bewildered by the sight of nearly Artie's entire family when they reached their seats, he didn't show it.

"Blaine, you know Ella, of course, and this is my fiancé, Harrison," Nancy said, taking her seat and motioning for her daughter to move down one so that Blaine and Artie could sit next to each other. "Harrison, this is Artie's teammate Blaine. He used to attend Dalton, but now he goes to McKinley."

"Harrison Smythe, nice to meet you," Harrison said, shaking Blaine's hand.

"Harrison Sm-Smythe…" Blaine repeated, putting two and two together as he glanced down at Artie, who had turned as white as a ghost and wouldn't meet his eyes.

This was the moment when Artie knew that his and Sebastian's secret was out of the bag.

* * *

By the time they took their seats in the auditorium the next day, everyone on both the New Directions and The Warblers had heard about Artie and Sebastian.

Immediately following the showcase, Blaine had told Sam, who told Finn, who told Rachel, who told everybody else. He had also texted his good friends Trent, Nick, and Jeff from Dalton to see if they were aware of this, which they hadn't been at the time, but it didn't take long for them to alert the rest of The Warblers.

Initially, everybody had been really shocked and upset by the secret Artie had been keeping from them (except for Mike, who looked relieved that he didn't have to worry anymore about accidentally letting it slip), but it didn't take long for them to warm up to the idea once he had explained himself backstage before they did their show circle.

" _I just want to apologize to you all for not telling you all sooner. I knew my mom was seeing somebody, and I knew he had a son my age, but I didn't know that it was Sebastian until our parents were already engaged," Artie had explained. "We didn't get along until recently- when he decided to change his ways- and I promise that I never spilled any of our secrets to someone on our rival team. Keeping this family situation private wasn't cool, and I wanted to tell you guys sooner, but I was afraid of how you would react. I'm sorry for anyone who feels hurt by my actions."_

" _You can't control who your parents love," Finn replied with a shrug, remembering the way he wasn't too thrilled when his mom got engaged to Kurt's dad. "I'm sorry you felt like you needed to go through all of the trouble of keeping this a secret."_

_A chorus of "yeahs" and nods came from around the circle, showing Artie that his friends weren't mad at him like he had expected. He couldn't even articulate the amount of relief he was experiencing now that he was secret-free._

Now, Artie sat next to Puck in the accessible row of the audience as they waited for the competition to begin. The judges were introduced, then the announcer welcomed The Warblers to the stage, as they were up first.

The Warblers took their positions, as a single spotlight shone down on Sebastian.

"Before we begin, we would like to encourage you to please make a donation to one of our charity baskets that are set up all around the auditorium. Just look for the Dalton blazer. Please give what you can," Sebastian said before stepping back into formation as the group began to sing The Wanted's "Glad You Came".

"Dude, I know that Sebastian kid is, like, your brother or something, but he has a seriously punchable face," Puck said, leaning over to Artie.

Artie laughed before returning his attention to the performance, where he couldn't keep his eyes off of Watson. He looked so confident and at home up on that stage, and he even had a few solo parts in their song. Artie couldn't help but feel proud that he had inspired him to take part, as well as proud that he had successfully convinced Sebastian to allow him to join the team. The kid had some serious pipes.

When it was finally time for the New Directions to perform, Artie had to admit that he was a little bit nervous. He never usually got stage fright, but he had also never sung lead during a competition before. He was singing most of the lines from "I Believe I Can Fly" in the mash-up they were performing first, and he knew that this performance would determine whether or not they got to attend Nationals in Chicago.

Once the music started, Artie's nerves disappeared as he commanded everyone's attention with his soulful voice. Artie was grateful that they were competing on their home turf and that they had practiced with the fog machine so much during rehearsals that he didn't even worry about falling off the stage.

After the mash-up was finished, the girls began singing "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)" as Artie and the boys left the stage and headed up the back way so that they could take their spots in the upstairs balconies in preparation for the final song. The girls captivated the audience with their upbeat song and mesmerizing choreography.

By the time Rachel had finished their final song, "Here's To Us", the crowd was on their feet. It was evident to every member of the New Directions that they were the real winners- regardless of the actual outcome.

After the judges deliberated, the results were determined, and all three of the show choirs that had competed returned to the stage for the awards ceremony.

"I've crossed oceans and time to bring the results of this show choir competition!" The creepy vampire judge announced into the microphone. "In third place, from Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow, The Golden Goblets!"

The third place team cheered and collected their trophy before exiting the stage. The two remaining teams moved closer together as the judge opened the last remaining envelope containing the results.

Artie squeezed Sam's hand as they waited in anticipation, glancing over at where Sebastian stood. Sebastian locked eyes with him and managed a small smile before the judge began speaking again.

"The moment you've all been waiting for… the 2012 Midwest Regional Champions! From McKinley High, the New Directions!"

The crowd roared and the New Directions jumped up and down as they cheered. It felt like the world was moving in slow motion.

"We did it!" Rachel yelled in Artie's face, taking him by the shoulders.

As his team continued to celebrate and pass around their giant trophy, Artie found himself wheeling over to where Watson, Sebastian, and The Warblers looked defeated that their season had come to an end. Artie shook hands with both boys, congratulating them on a great performance.

After congratulating the rival team, Artie returned to celebrating with his friends. He high-fived Puck and Rory before Quinn sat down in his lap and hugged him around the neck as she planted a kiss on his cheek.

The New Directions had beaten The Warblers once and for all and now they were on to Nationals, he didn't have to keep any more secrets from his friends, _and_ he had received a kiss from one of the most popular girls in school.

Could this day get any better?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I used some direct quotes and scenes from 3x14 for this chapter, and in my version of the story, Finchel isn't getting married and Quinn doesn't get in her accident!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

_**ARTIE** _

Artie packed his car with his duffel bag, fishing rod, and everything else he would need for the weekend before saying goodbye to his mom and setting out on the two-and-a-half hour drive to Akron from Lima.

He was spending the weekend with his dad, who had called the day before and told him that he had a fishing trip planned for the two of them on Cottage Grove Lake. Ella usually came with Artie on the weekend visits to their dad's house, but she had cheer practice she insisted that she couldn't miss, so Art had decided that a father-son fishing trip was in order. Artie had been excited by the idea of fishing on the lake, as it was an activity that they had enjoyed together prior to the accident that didn't feel any different afterwards. For a couple of hours when they were out on the water, Artie was able to forget that he was unlike any other eighteen-year-old boy.

As the kids had gotten older, it became harder and harder to coordinate regular visits to Akron with everybody's schedules- including Art's. He worked for the Cleveland Indians, the closest Major League Baseball team, and his schedule could also be unpredictable- especially during the season. Because of this, Art leaped at any chance he got to spend with his kids.

While Griffin and Ella were more outspoken and effortlessly charismatic like Nancy, Artie found himself taking after his dad- outgoing and fun-loving, but with a serious and cautious side as well. With three kids in the family and his parents being divorced, Artie didn't always get to spend one-on-one time with his father, so he was very excited for what the weekend had in store.

Singing along to his music playlist while driving made the time pass quickly, and before he knew it, he was pulling into the driveway of his father's house.

Artie honked the horn twice to signal his arrival before opening the car door and beginning to assemble his chair. He had just transferred into it and was retrieving his duffel bag out of the backseat when Art Abrams opened the front door and ran out to greet his son.

"Hey, Artie Man! Glad you made it here safely! How was the drive?" he bent down to hug his son and ruffle his dark brown hair. Artie was the spitting image of his father, having inherited his brunette hair, blue eyes, dimples, and poor eyesight.

"Smooth as can be. There was no traffic at all!" Artie reported.

"Good to hear. Come on in!" Art replied, taking the bag off of Artie's lap and slinging it over his shoulder before he led him inside.

Artie rolled up the collapsible metal ramp his father had set up for him and was greeted in the home's entryway by his father's dog, a black labrador named Buck (short for Buckeye, of course). Artie locked his wheels in place as the dog excitedly rested its front paws on the boy's lap so that he could lick his face.

Art's house was nowhere near as big as the one back in Lima because, other than when his kids came to visit, he and Buck were the sole occupants. There were a couple of obvious accommodations made for Artie, including ramps where needed, a shower chair, and the absence of rugs, but the house still wasn't Artie's favorite when it came to getting around due to its tight corners and small bathroom. It wasn't quite as luxuriously accessible as his home back in Lima, but it wasn't unbearable either.

The house's interior looked like your typical middle-aged man's bachelor pad: worn leather couches, ESPN constantly playing on the TV, and the fridge was stocked with beer and take-out leftovers.

Artie followed Art towards the bedroom that the kids shared when they stayed over, which had a set of bunk beds and a full-size bed with an alternating pressure mattress to prevent Artie from getting pressure sores (sometimes there were perks that came with Artie's unique situation, such as getting his own bed and not being forced to bunk with one of his siblings!). Art deposited Artie's bag on the bed.

"I ordered some Chinese food for dinner tonight. How does that sound?" Art asked with a wink, knowing that that was Artie's favorite meal.

"Yum. That sounds amazing!" Artie nodded eagerly.

"Okay, cool. I'll leave you to get settled, and I'll be in the living room if you need anything," Art told him as he turned to leave.

Once alone, Artie decided it was best for him to visit the bathroom, as he hadn't done so since before he left his place a few hours before. He found that going directly before he left the house and immediately after arriving at his destination when traveling helped to reduce the embarrassing accidents that can be prevalent when you are lost to sensation in the lower half of your body.

Artie exited the bedroom and wheeled himself down the hallway towards the bathroom. On his way there, he couldn't help but stop and look at the framed pictures on the walls. His father didn't have many pieces of decor around the house, but he did have a couple of pictures hung up here and there. Artie noticed a few of Ella, one or two of Griffin, and a whole bunch of himself, both pre and post-accident. Besides the usual gymnastics action shots, there were a couple of photos of him from Glee Club competitions as well. It warmed his heart to see that his father was still so proud of him, even if he was no longer athletic like the rest of the family.

When he was finished looking at the photos, Artie arrived at the bathroom, pushing the door open with one hand before attempting to roll inside, slamming his fingers into the door frame. He had momentarily forgotten that the doorways here were not widened. He cursed under his breath and shook out his hand before backing up and carefully realigning himself to enter at just the right angle that wouldn't cause the loss of an appendage.

After doing his business in a fraction of the size he was used to, Artie washed his hands before returning to the living room where his father was seated on the couch with Buck by his side.

"What classic movie should we dust off for the occasion?" Art asked, excited to be spending some time with his one kid who loved films as much as he does.

"I'm thinking maybe a Spielberg?" Artie suggested, receiving a nod of approval from his old man. "Maybe _Jaws_ or _E.T._?"

After settling on _Jaws_ as the movie for the night, Artie got himself comfortable in the loveseat beside the couch. When the food arrived, Art brought it into the living room where they enjoyed it from the comfort of their seats in front of the TV. Artie couldn't help but think about how his mother would _never_ let him eat greasy food in the living room.

 _It'll be nice being at Dad's for a change_ , Artie thought to himself as he blissfully enjoyed his dinner and movie without a care in the world.

* * *

The lake they would be fishing on was only a short drive from Art's house, so they loaded up his pickup truck with everything they would need for the day and were out the door by 8 AM. Artie had been in charge of packing lunches (a more difficult task than he had anticipated due to the lack of healthy, substantial food in the house), life jackets, and rods, while Art was able to load the canoe into the bed of his truck.

Even though it was springtime, it was still a little chilly, especially out on the water, so Artie chose to wear his trusty wetsuit. Even though it was a pain in the ass to get on, he knew that it would be the wisest choice to prevent his body temperature from fluctuating if he were to get wet. They also opted to leave Artie's chair at home, due to the fact that it wouldn't be of much use during the trip and would, instead, just be taking up space in the backseat.

When they reached the lake, Art found a parking spot that was close to the water's edge. Artie stayed where he was in the passenger seat, trying his best not to feel helpless, as his father unloaded the car and set up their boat. When he was finished, Art came back to the car and carried Artie piggy-back style, bringing him down to the shore.

Artie set down his chair's cushion on the canoe's bench so that he would have a stable and comfortable place to sit before Art lowered him down. When Artie had himself situated, Art climbed in the boat too and took control of the oars before pushing off the sandy edge and into the water.

Artie grasped the bench tightly and was thankful for the bit of core strength that he still had as the boat rocked uneasily as they headed out towards their lucky fishing spot. Today was truly going to be testing his balance, but Artie was always up for a challenge.

After about twenty minutes of rowing, they reached their destination. They had always liked this spot because it was quiet, secluded, and the water was calm, making it much easier for Artie to focus on the task at hand without worrying about toppling over.

After they baited their hooks and cast them into the water, it was time for the waiting to begin. The father and son made small talk about school, Glee Club, baseball, and more for a bit of time, as neither one really wanted to address the elephant in the room- Nancy's impending nuptials.

Artie felt lucky that his parents had remained friendly after the divorce. He knew many people whose divorced parents were constantly at each other's throats or bitter about the success of the other, but not his. Nancy had always said that she and Art "were still best friends, but they just weren't meant to be a couple", and Artie had found that really comforting growing up. Over the last eight years, they had co-parented three amazing kids from different parts of the state, and although it was difficult at times, they had always managed to get along.

Artie knew that his father was aware of his mother's engagement to Harrison- and that he would be on the guestlist for the wedding- but he didn't want to bring the topic up, just in case it made things awkward.

Likewise, the topic was also weighing on Art's mind, wondering how his son was feeling about the arrangement.

Eventually, Art cleared his throat and decided to go ahead and rip the Band-Aid off.

"So… Mom's engaged," he stated, taking Artie by complete surprise. "How do you feel about it?"

"Oh. Uh… Harrison's a really nice guy. I like him a lot," Artie replied as he looked out over the water.

"That's good," Art replied casually. "I haven't gotten the chance to meet him yet, but from what I hear, he sounds pretty cool. A little stuck up for my liking, but tolerable."

The last comment elicited a laugh from the boy. While Harrison and Art's personalities were similar in many ways, his dad was definitely more of a t-shirt and flip-flops kind of guy whose perfect afternoon would be spent out on the water or grilling, whereas Harrison would prefer a suit and catered meal.

"He's great. I think you'll like him," Artie assured him. "He's got a son too. Sebastian. He's my age."

"Your age? Well, that's fun. Kind of like having a twin!"

Artie let out a small chuckle.

"Well, not really. We couldn't be more different. He's this super popular lacrosse player from Dalton, and I'm… well, me," Artie shrugged. "He's on our rival show choir team too."

"Ooh! Am I correct in sensing that a little bit of a sibling rivalry is going on?" Art asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Kind of, I guess. We beat them at Regionals though, so now they're done for the season," Artie informed him. "He and I butted heads for a while until about two weeks ago. Now, he's better."

"Well, you know, your Uncle Charlie and I weren't the best of pals either when we first became siblings," Art pointed out to his son, reminding him that he had a step-brother as well. "I'm a year younger than him and it took us until he left for college to begin getting along. If things are already looking up for you and Seamus-"

"Sebastian," Artie corrected.

"Right. Sebastian. My point is, if you are starting to coexist, then you're already ahead of me and Charlie. And look at us now! We're the best of friends," Art pointed out.

Artie had to admit that he was right. His dad and his step-uncle (is that the proper term? Artie didn't know) were nearly inseparable now that they were adults. Hearing how they had fought as teenagers did instill some hope in Artie that just maybe things between him and Sebastian would work themselves out for the better.

"I guess you're right," Artie replied. "Having so many people in the house again is weird, though. Especially with it having been just Mom, Ella, and I these past few years while Griffin's been at school. It reminds me of the old days."

Artie sighed as he reminisced on life before the accident. Everything had been so simple back then. He wished he knew at age eight just how good he had it, and that his life wouldn't be that great forever.

With the serenity and peacefulness that came with being on the water, Artie then felt the confidence to quietly speak up about something that had been weighing on his mind for years.

"I'm sorry that you and Mom separated. I know that it was my accident that caused it all. So… I'm sorry."

Art looked over at his son, his eyes wide with shock.

"What? No, Artie. That's not what happened at all," He assured him, Artie eventually lifting his eyes to meet his father's. "Is that what you've been thinking all these years?!"

Artie shrugged.

"Everything was fine until there was a gimpy kid to care for," he answered simply, breaking eye contact again and trying to busy himself by looking out into the water for the bobber on the end of his line.

"Artie…" Art said sadly as he rested his rod between his knees and reached out to place a comforting hand on his son's shoulder. "That's not true. There were a lot of issues before that- we just kept them from you kids. The divorce was years in the making, bud. It had nothing to do with your paralysis or the crash. If anything, that's what patched up the relationship for a couple more years. We wanted to band together as a family to support you and your siblings. But you did _not_ cause us to separate, do you hear me?"

Artie glanced up into his father's blue eyes, and it was apparent that he was telling the truth.

" _Parents are weird," Sebastian had said that day in his bedroom. "They hide things from their kids for years until one day they just can't anymore. Your parents were probably having problems long before you realized."_

After he had learned more about Sebastian, Artie had just assumed that he had been speaking from experience- when his parents had hidden his mother's diagnosis from him. But now, Artie believed that maybe Sebastian had been right in assuming that Artie's parents' divorce had been a long time coming. With all that being said, Artie now felt oddly relieved.

But before he could open his mouth to respond, he felt a tug coming from his rod which nearly threw him off-balance.

Both men's heads snapped in the direction of the fishing line.

"Way to go, bud! Looks like you caught something!" Art exclaimed.

As he began to quickly reel his line in, Artie couldn't help but feel empowered knowing that regardless of whether he was walking, flipping, rolling, or singing, his father would always be proud and supportive of him.

And that was all he could ask for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

_**SEBASTIAN** _

Sebastian quietly sipped his lemonade (which he may or may not have spiked himself) as he watched the scene play out before him.

Artie had invited the New Directions over to the house for some sort of gathering. All sixteen members of the team were present and coming and going between the kitchen and living room as they pleased. Each guest had brought a snack or drink to share, and Nancy had ordered pizza for everyone.

Sebastian was still unsure of what the occasion was. It was nobody's birthday, and Nationals were still a few months away. It was just a regular Friday afternoon, and they were all just _genuinely enjoying each other's company_. Never in a million years would The Warblers hang out like this after hours.

With Warblers practices having been reduced to only two days a week instead of five, Sebastian found himself at home when the party started. Artie had been quick to extend the invitation for him to hang out with the group, and while part of him wanted to decline, the sneaky and observant side of him wanted to people watch and see what they were all about.

So that's exactly what he did.

He watched as the monstrous football jocks practically inhaled whole pizzas, how Kurt and the girls had formed their own little gossip circle, and how the boys challenged each other to beat Artie's high score on Dance Dance Revolution. There was so much laughter and radiant energy coming from the group that it was hard to be an outsider.

Sebastian took another sip of his lemonade and grabbed a chocolate chip cookie off of the table before wandering into the living room to join in on the fun. He took a seat in the armchair beside the couch where Kurt and the girls were sitting and finished his snack just as Artie had beaten the foreign exchange student at the dance video game.

"Aye, Rory! That was pretty close!" Artie commented from the floor as he reached up to give the boy with the caramel-colored hair and funny accent a high five.

"Nobody's gotten as close to beating me as Seb has, though," Artie continued, glancing behind him at the boy as he pushed himself up into a seated position from where he had been lying on his stomach. "He's been getting better!"

All eyes turned to look at Sebastian, just casually shrugged as one of his trademark smirks appeared on his face. He and Artie had been playing the game a lot more recently, and even he had to admit that he was getting pretty good.

"I'll believe it when I see it, white boy," the black girl whose name he couldn't remember said, raising an eyebrow in his direction.

Sebastian had never been one to turn down a challenge- especially when an audience was involved- so he gladly stood up and made his way over to the dance mat as the New Directions members cheered. Artie grinned as he repositioned himself on his stomach in preparation for the music to begin.

The boy with the dreadlocks selected the level and pressed play and the two soon-to-be brothers began to battle. Sebastian could hear the others chanting Artie's name as they went head-to-head, and it only drove him to move his feet faster. Despite this, when the music ended, the smaller boy reigned supreme, albeit, not by a very large margin.

Sebastian was out of breath as he smiled down at Artie and fist-bumped him before returning to the armchair he had vacated a few minutes earlier. Dancing had loosened him up a bit (or was that the Tito's?), and he was now ready to dive right into making conversation with the kids surrounding him.

"Hey, Aretha," Sebastian leaned to his left and waved over the girl who was seated on the couch chit-chatting with her friends.

She raised an eyebrow when she realized that he was talking to her.

"That's Miss Mercedes Jones to you, white boy," She replied after she had hesitantly scooted over towards him. "What do you want?"

"Just to get to know you all better," Sebastian said, clarifying when he noticed the skeptical look on her face. "If Artie and I are going to be step-brothers, and you all are going to be hanging around my place all the time, then I think I have a right to know your histories."

The-girl-now-known-as-Mercedes rolled her eyes but didn't hesitate to fill him in.

"See those two?" Mercedes asked, pointing at the two girls in the cheerleading uniforms (one of which he knew was Santana) snuggled up on the couch across from them. "They're in love. Like, I wouldn't be surprised if they got married in the next five years. They've been together officially for about a year now, but they were doin' stuff long before that. The blonde- Brittany- used to date Artie. Then she cheated on him, he called her stupid, blah, blah, blah… then she went running to Santana."

 _Artie dated her?!_ Sebastian thought, impressed by his dorky soon-to-be brother's game when it came to the opposite sex. There was no denying that Brittany was a beautiful girl- and Sebastian wasn't even into that.

"What about those guys?" Sebastian asked, pointing to where Artie was goofing off with some of the boys.

"Those are the new kids. Joe is the one with the dreads- we call him Teen Jesus around here- and Rory is the exchange student from Ireland," Mercedes explained. "I think Rory and Artie had a falling out over Sugar a few weeks back… but it looks like they're fine now!"

"Sugar?" Sebastian was clearly confused about why the teenage boys would be fighting over a table condiment.

"Oh! Sugar Motta," Mercedes elaborated, pointing to the girl with a giant bow on her head who was sitting next to Kurt on the couch. "She joined this year too. She's sweet, but the girl can't hit a damn note. Her dad paid for all of our costumes and transportation for the rest of the year to get her on the team."

Sebastian raised his eyebrows in surprise. He wasn't exactly sure how much it costs to run a show choir group, as Dalton was wealthy enough that they never had to worry about finances, but he was sure it was a lot. Also, that Sugar girl wasn't bad looking either. Artie had good taste.

"Then you know Kurt, Blaine, and Rachel… Oh, those guys over there! That's Puck, Sam, Finn, and Mike. They're the jocks. Artie's kind of a floater- he's friends with everyone. He hung out with them a lot when he was on the football team last year, though," Mercedes shared.

"He was on the what?!" Sebastian couldn't believe what he was hearing. How could Artie possibly have played varsity football in a chair? He had a feeling that this would be a long explanation, so he just shook his head and moved the conversation along. "Nevermind. What's up with Sad Sally over there?"

Mercedes turned her head to look in the direction of where Sebastian had nodded. Quinn looked depressed as she sat alone and nursed the beverage in her hand.

"Quinn? She's had a bit of a rough year. Over the summer, she cut her hair, dyed it pink, got a tramp stamp of Ryan Seacrest, quit the Cheerios to join the Skanks, tried to frame the adoptive mother of her biological daughter for child abuse…" Mercedes listed as Sebastian felt like his head was spinning. No wonder the girl looked like a suicide risk.

"Alright. What about T-T-T-Tina?" He mimicked the girl's former stutter he had heard about from stories Artie had shared.

Mercedes stifled a laugh.

"She's a gem. Aside from that argument they had early on regarding the fake stutter, which apparently you've heard about…" Sebastian nodded. "Her and Artie are still best friends- they have been since middle school- and they even dated a little Freshman year until Tina dumped him while she was at Asian Camp and started dating Mike Chang."

Mercedes pointed out the tall Asian boy who was currently crushing the Frankenteen (Finn? Was that his name?) at Dance Dance Revolution.

"After Tina broke up with him, Artie got really upset and decided to change up his image by trying out for football and dating Brittany," Mercedes continued. "She and Mike are the queen and king of PDA. It's gross."

Sebastian scrunched up his nose in disgust and noticed that Artie had stopped fooling around with his friends and his eyes were now fixated on the girl with the straight black hair as she and Kurt laughed together on the couch.

 _Oh my God! He's so not over her!_ Sebastian realized as he noticed the look Artie was casting in her direction. He knew that look. He had been the one giving that look to Blaine all these months.

Then, Sebastian got a bright idea.

Artie's mother had been hard at work planning the wedding that was scheduled to happen in June. The location was set, the guest list was finalized, and the entertainment (the New Directions and The Warblers) was booked. This was the _perfect_ opportunity for him to meddle in Artie's personal life a little bit- for his own good.

For the next few months, Sebastian was going to make it his life's mission to get his future brother a wedding date.

He looked over at Artie who was still staring longingly after the Asian girl. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. This was getting painful to watch.

* * *

_**ARTIE** _

"There's some history there, right?" Sebastian had startled Artie, sauntering up to his chair and putting a hand on his armrest. "You and Tina Blowin'-Wang."

"Please don't call her that," Artie said, prying Sebastian's fingers off of his property. Just when he thought Sebastian had made some progress. It was always one step forward, two steps back with him. "And that's not really any of your business."

"As your _brother_ ," Sebastian said, placing extra emphasis on that word, adding his usual smirk for effect. "I think it is. I took the liberty of asking Honda Accord over there…"

Artie closed his eyes. "Mercedes," he said through gritted teeth.

"She told me the two of you went out in ninth, but you broke up the following summer," he said. "Something to do with Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon over there."

Raising his glass, Sebastian indicated to Mike Chang.

"Don't... don't go there," Artie was pleading now, begging the other guy not to insert himself into Artie's love life, or lack thereof.

"I want to help you out, Everett von Scott," Sebastian insisted, still having yet to ditch his insensitive nicknames for the boy. "I also heard about your track record with girls. I think you need to change your patterns, and I happen to know that you need a date for our parents' wedding."

Artie could feel Sebastian's breath on the back of his neck, sending a shiver down the part of his spine that remained intact.

"I'm not having this conversation with you. Not right now," Artie placed his hands on his wheels and broke away from the other boy, returning back to where his friends were milling around.

Sebastian retreated to the armchair he had been sitting in, eager to begin planning how he would go about securing Artie a date.

* * *

A few hours later, just after the New Directions had all gone back to their own houses, Artie returned to his bedroom, Sebastian hot on his wheels.

"So… wedding dates. Even though you strike me as a little bit of a closet-case homosexual, I've heard about your rather sloppy past with girls," Sebastian told Artie, closing the door behind them. "I know you're still yearning for the love and affection of your sweet Tina Warrior Princess, but face it, dude. She's just not that into you."

Artie scowled and crossed his arms over his chest.

"You're stuck in the friend zone for the rest of eternity, I presume. She's comfortably coupled up with the mute football player, who probably danced his way right into her little Asian heart. And since I don't see you getting up and tap dancing any time soon, I think we need to move on and set our sights on new horizons, if you will. Based on your history with Trusty Tina, Bisexual Brittany, and Silk-stocking Sugar, I think we need to go in a different direction-"

"Forget me for a second," Artie cut in, holding a hand in the air. "What about you? You need a date, right? Anybody left at that school of yours that you haven't alienated by now? Or blinded, deafened, or otherwise maimed?"

"As a matter of fact, Miss Ella asked me to dance with her at the wedding," Sebastian said, tossing his nose in the air. "So, I think I'm spoken for. Back to you. I have a question, Professor X… do you have any of your own clothes or did you inherit your entire wardrobe from a dead relative?"

"Say what?!" Artie looked down at the pressed white shirt and sweater vest that he'd tucked into his pleated pants and topped off with a belt and saddle shoes. He shot an angry look at Sebastian, who innocently held up his hands.

"Don't get defensive," he said. "I'm trying to help. To give you a little brotherly advice. Men's fashion happens to be a little hobby of mine. As a guy stuck in a school uniform, I guess I don't understand why you dress like you're following some rule that says you have to look like you're eighty."

Artie opened his mouth to retaliate against the boy, but no words came out. In a way, he kind of had a point.

"Look, dude. I'm telling you this because I care about you. Lose the grandpa look. I'll even help you. Tomorrow we can go to the mall and get you an entirely new wardrobe, styled by yours truly. We can pretend we're Cher and Tai from _Clueless_ ," Sebastian put a hand on Artie's shoulder. "And don't worry. My style is a lot better than Kurt Hummel's."

Artie took a moment to think this proposal over. Was he still pining after Tina even though she was with Mike? Definitely. Did he necessarily need a date for the wedding? No, but it wouldn't hurt to have one. Did he like his style as it is? No? Yes? The fact that he wasn't sure about how to answer the last question answered it for him.

"Fine," Artie relented. "But if you make me look like I play for the other team, I'll kick your ass."

Sebastian laughed.

"I'd love to see you try."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to FF writer gigundoly for all of the help with ideas and quotes for this chapter!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

**SEBASTIAN**

Sebastian was happy that Artie had agreed to go to the mall with him so that he could reinvent Artie's atrocious style into something more age-appropriate and trendy.

The night before, after Artie had given Sebastian his blessing, they had spent about an hour scrolling through Pinterest and fashion websites to find a look that Artie liked so that Sebastian could help him replicate it. Sebastian soon realized that Artie did have a sense of fashion- despite the way that he has dressed all his life.

Sebastian and Artie were laughing together as they reentered the house after their day of shopping. Both parties were clearly pleased with the pieces they had purchased, and Sebastian was confident that Artie would never return to his grandpa clothes again, now that he'd seen the light.

"So I take it that the trip to the mall went well?" Nancy asked the boys as they entered the kitchen, looking hopefully at her son.

To her relief, Artie nodded.

"It's taken much convincing, but I think it may be time to retire my suspenders, piano key belt, saddle shoes, and even my trusty yellow fingerless gloves once and for all," Artie replied.

"Don't worry, we bought him some newer, sleeker black fingerless gloves to protect those hands of his," Sebastian added, raising the shopping bags he was holding in the air.

"Well I hope you bought some swimsuits for both of you," Harrison said as he strolled into the kitchen.

The two boys shared a confused look.

"Um… it's March," Artie stated.

"And we live in Ohio," Sebastian pointed out.

"But it's my spring break and we're going on a little family vacation!"

Artie and Sebastian spun around and their faces lit up with surprise.

"Griff!" Artie exclaimed, tossing the shopping bag that was in his lap onto the floor before wheeling towards his older brother.

Griffin bent down and wrapped Artie in a huge brotherly hug, even going so far as to slightly lift him out of his chair. Once Artie was safely seated again, Griffin turned to Sebastian and hugged him as well.

"What are you doing here?! And what do you mean 'family vacation'?!" Artie asked.

"We're going to Aruba!" Nancy informed them. "We wanted to surprise you kids with a little family bonding time before the wedding."

"Think of it as a pre-wedding, family-oriented honeymoon," Harrison supplied. "But we leave first thing tomorrow morning, so you boys better get started packing!"

With that, both Artie and Sebastian immediately headed in opposite directions towards their bedrooms to begin preparations for their early morning departure for paradise.

* * *

"Hey, Meals on Wheels," Sebastian nudged Artie, noticing that he had pulled an orange out of his bag and started peeling it as they sat and waited in the terminal. "Got anything else?"

Artie produced another orange and handed it to him.

"Anything besides fruit? Chips, maybe?"

Artie shook his head.

"Okay. Well, I'm gonna go buy something and get a soda. You want anything?" Sebastian asked.

Artie shook his head, as Ella looked up from her sketchbook and colored pencils.

"He can't have salt or soda before the flight," she added, helpfully. "I'll take some Cheetos, though, if they have any."

"Why can't you?" Sebastian wanted to know. When Artie just shrugged and returned to the book he was reading, Sebastian caught sight of Griffin, who'd also looked up from his book, briefly, and quickly buried his nose back in.

"Whatever," said Sebastian, figuring he'd go stretch his legs for a minute and get some snacks, even if they were going to be overpriced.

They had a long flight ahead of them, plus they'd be changing planes in Atlanta. How did all of that even work with Artie? Sebastian had paid enough attention to know that they'd be boarding first and checking Artie's chair at the gate. Then, Artie would be brought to his seat on a special aisle chair. What happened if Artie needed to get up during the flight? And what about those bathrooms on the plane? They were tiny, completely inaccessible... what then?

After he'd gotten himself and Ella the snacks that cost him way too much, Sebastian returned to the waiting area. They'd be boarding soon.

"Where's Artie?" he asked Griffin, who looked up and just now noticed that his younger brother was gone.

"Oh," he said, shrugging. "He probably went to the restroom. He has to go right before we board since he can't get up while we're flying." He went back to his book.

Sebastian couldn't relax enough to read anything, though. Was this whole trip thing even going to be any fun for Artie? Sebastian didn't know why he was suddenly so concerned. After all, they were going to Aruba, he was going to have fun, and that was really the only important part. Was this what having a sibling was about? Worrying about whether someone else was having fun?

"Hey," Artie greeted him, returning from his bathroom break. "You get to enjoy the one perk of the chair on a plane." He gave a nod to the airline attendant, who was getting ready to announce that it was time to board. "We get to board first."

"What if you have to get up?" Sebastian heard himself blurting out. "You know, go to the bathroom?"

Artie cocked his head to the side, then, and a small smile appeared on his face.

"Wait," he said. "You're... worried about me?"

"What? No."

Artie looked unconvinced.

"I have a leg bag," he said. "I usually don't have to use an indwelling catheter, but I do on the plane. It's actually all pretty simple," he shrugged before adding: "And I saw you staring at my feet. They're compression stockings. It was a bitch to get them on, but they'll keep me from getting a blood clot on the flight. So, some prep work is required, but all in all, it's manageable. I'm good."

"I didn't say you weren't," Sebastian quickly assured him, sitting down and pretending to be looking for something in his bag.

He didn't have to pretend for long, though, because just then, the woman at the desk for their gate began talking over the intercom system.

"We are now inviting all guests traveling on Flight 614 to Atlanta who need some extra assistance to board at this time."

"That's airline code for: 'Artie and the old people, come aboard!'" Artie leaned over and whispered to Sebastian, who stifled a laugh as he stood up and noticed that their family and the elderly were, in fact, the only ones approaching the gate.

The woman scanned their tickets and they entered the jet bridge. Sure enough, at the end of the walkway, a flight attendant was standing there, ready to assist Artie.

"For me? You shouldn't have," Artie joked, eliciting a laugh from his family and the flight attendant alike.

Sebastian's heart sped up as he became nervous watching Artie transfer from his usual wheelchair to the aisle chair. If he had learned anything from living with the boy for a couple of months now, it was that Artie had terrible balance- sometimes when he was sitting unsupported on the floor he would just randomly topple over. The skinny aisle chair did not look very safe. Just then, Artie buckled himself in, allowing Sebastian to breathe a sigh of relief.

There was nothing pretty or dignified about entering the plane via the aisle chair, but Artie was a seasoned traveler and handled it like a champ. Luckily their seats were not far back on the aircraft, and they had agreed on seating arrangements ahead of time. Griffin slid into the row first, as he would be taking the window seat, followed by Sebastian in the middle, and Artie on the aisle. Ella occupied the other aisle seat across from them, and beside her, Harrison and Nancy. Sebastian normally would have complained about being stuck in the middle- especially since he had a good four inches of height on Artie- but he stayed quiet, knowing that air travel must be a hassle for Artie as it is.

When they were seated, the rest of the passengers boarded the plane, settling in around them. Griffin still had his head buried in his book and Sebastian was scrolling through social media, but Artie's book lay untouched in his lap. Instead, he was craning his neck over Sebastian and Griffin, attempting to see out the window.

"Dude. We're not in the air yet. I promise, you'd know if we were," Sebastian told him, noticing his anxious behavior all of a sudden. "What's wrong? Why are you acting like this?"

"I just want to make sure that the chair is getting on the plane safely," Artie admitted as he nervously bit his nails. "Do you know how many times people's chairs and other accessibility items get accidentally left behind? Or broken because the baggage handlers are too rough with them? A lot."

"Hey. Stop worrying. Everything's going to be fine, and before you know it we'll be enjoying the relaxing white sand beaches of the Caribbean," Sebastian assured him, to which Artie made a "humph" noise in response before finally picking up his book and beginning to read.

Sebastian continued to thumb through his Twitter feed, but his mind was elsewhere. He really had never thought about how difficult it was for Artie to travel like this. Everything from going through security, to having to wear the catheter and compression socks, to being loaded onto the plane in the aisle chair made trips like this more burdensome for Artie. Air travel was something Sebastian had always thought of as simple and that he took for granted, but never would again.

* * *

**ARTIE**

"Aren't you coming?" Griffin asked, holding his own swim trunks and the pair he'd grabbed for his brother. He tossed them to Artie, who opened his eyes, just in time for the trunks to hit him in the face.

Artie removed the shorts from his face and set them aside as he lay on the hotel bed.

"No," he said, exhausted from the long morning of travel. "I want to take a nap."

He closed his eyes, hoping his brother would take a hint and leave him alone. Ten years later, Artie still wondered why it was so hard for his family to figure out that the beach still wasn't fun for him.

"Mom'll be upset."

Those were Griffin's parting words, and as Artie peeked one eye open, he saw that Griffin actually had left him alone. He sighed with relief and closed his eyes once more. He figured he'd go, at some point, just to make his mom and Harrison happy, but he really was tired right now. So tired, in fact, that he fell asleep.

Artie had never been picked up while dead asleep before. Certainly not since he was an infant. Consequently, it was a rather terrifying thing, to wake up to Sebastian scooping him out of the bed.

"What do you think you're doing?!"

"Carrying your ass to the beach," he said. "Come on, my dad feels guilty if everyone isn't together enjoying this trip. So you're coming with me."

"Put me down," Artie protested, trying his best to wriggle out of Sebastian's strong grasp and failing miserably. When that didn't work, he got louder. "Put me down NOW!"

Sebastian finally did as he was told, depositing Artie back onto the bed.

"Don't ever do that again," Artie threatened. "I mean it."

"Well, I'm supposed to be bonding with you," Sebastian shot back. "How am I gonna do that if you're here, asleep? Will you just get over yourself and just come down there with us? Ella wants to catch crabs after sundown."

"Oh, yeah, and just how am I supposed to do that with her?" Artie asked, shaking his head. "You know, I explained a lot of things to you, more than I ever did with any of my other friends, but you still don't get it. I don't know why I ever expected you to."

Sebastian paused. "I'm guessing the sand isn't an easy surface to push wheels over?" Artie gave him mock applause for figuring out only one of the many reasons this vacation wasn't the same relaxing experience for him as it was everyone else. "So? Let me give you a piggy-back ride then. We'll leave the chair, uh, someplace. Do you have, like, a chain and a lock so we could put it on a bike rack?"

Artie found himself laughing, in spite of himself now, as Sebastian tried to work out the logistics himself.

"I'll text Griffin," he finally said, warming up a little to the idea of going out. At least it was getting later now. He wouldn't have to worry about getting sunburned. There was one less thing to think about, anyway.

But Griffin didn't text back or return Artie's call a few minutes later. He figured his older brother had gotten busy, probably playing in the water with Ella. Sebastian was still waiting patiently, and Artie now noticed that it didn't even appear that he'd been in the water yet.

"Looks like we're playing horse and rider," Sebastian said, with a devious grin.

Artie sighed and, after some struggle with himself, finally got into his chair.

"No need for that. You can, however, push me across the sand once we get to the beach," he said. "I need a while to get ready, though."

Artie deliberately took his time, hoping that maybe, by some miracle, everyone would finish up early and he'd just "accidentally" miss out. But this was to no avail because thirty minutes later, Artie was dressed in a pair of swim trunks and one of the v-neck shirts he and Sebastian had purchased at the mall as Sebastian struggled to push his chair across the sand. Slowly but surely, they arrived at the water's edge, Artie took a wistful look at Ella and Griffin as they splashed in the waves at sunset.

"C'mon," said Sebastian, who at least asked this time. "Let me carry you over there so you can join us in the water. I promise, no pictures and I'm not going to tell anyone. And after this, Griffin can be responsible for you."

Artie knew Sebastian wasn't going to drop the conversation at that, but he also wasn't keen on giving this much control to a guy he'd only recently started to trust. He cast one last look at Ella. Griffin was too busy to notice his help was needed. Artie sighed.

"Fine."

Sebastian's face lit up, pleasantly surprised that his offer had been accepted.

The boys tossed their shirts to the side and took off their sandals before Artie wrapped his arms around Sebastian's neck as Sebastian reached his hands beneath Artie's knees and lower back. He lifted him into the air and walked towards the water, careful not to trip over the sand or crashing waves.

While the experience of having Sebastian carry him was a humbling one, Artie was quick to forget it once they had reached where his siblings were playing in the water. Sebastian set Artie down, and he was grateful for the warm water temperature, knowing that it wouldn't cause any inconvenient or harmful reactions from his body.

"Yay, you came!" Ella squealed, wading over to where Artie's head was bobbing above the waves.

"Yeah, well, Seb wasn't really going to give me an option," Artie replied, casting a grateful smile in Sebastian's direction.

The kids laughed as they carelessly splashed in the water until the sun went down. At some point, Nancy and Harrison had come down from where they had been sitting at the beach bar to watch the children having fun together just as they had hoped.

Eventually, Ella had decided that it was the perfect time to catch some crabs, so she and Sebastian ran to where their belongings were on the shore and grabbed their flashlights before heading off together.

Griffin took Artie in his arms the same way that Sebastian had before and carried him over to where they had spread out a beach blanket earlier. After depositing him on the ground, Griffin retrieved two towels, tossing one to Artie, who swiftly caught it.

"I'm glad I came down here today," Artie said as he dried his legs off. "I wasn't going to, but I'm kind of happy Sebastian forced me."

"I'm glad you did too," Griffin replied. "It's not as fun with just me and Ella."

Artie didn't reply, so Griffin spoke up again.

"Why were you being so moody earlier?"

Artie just shrugged and looked over to where he could see Sebastian and Ella digging through the sand. Even though the sun had already set, the beach was well-lit enough for him to watch. Artie couldn't help but think that Sebastian was replacing him as Ella's older brother. After all, he was the one who could go and do fun activities with her, while Artie had to watch from the sidelines like a sitting duck. He was upset with himself for thinking it, but it was the truth.

"I just wanted to give the three of you time to have fun without worrying about the chair or having to carry me. It's your vacation too, you should be able to relax and enjoy it. Without me holding you back," Artie quietly admitted eventually.

"Artie… you don't hold us back. We want you out here with us," Griffin tried to assure him.

"But I do!" Artie insisted. "I've always been the odd sibling out. But now Sebastian's here, and he's everything that I'm not- he's athletic, he's spontaneous, he's-"

"But he's not you!" Griffin cut him off. "For whatever it's worth, Ella and I have gotten used to you not wanting to participate over the years, so we have- unwillingly- learned to have fun without you. But Sebastian hasn't. You know that for those couple of hours that you held yourself up there in the room, Sebastian just sat right here? He didn't feel up to hanging out with Ella and I. He really cares about you, Art. We all do. We love you."

Artie realized that he had been right earlier in assuming that Sebastian hadn't been in the water yet. While it did make him feel good to know that Sebastian was looking forward to spending time with him, it didn't make him feel any less guilty about being the reason he sat out earlier.

Artie looked over again at where Sebastian was standing with his feet in the water. Despite Sebastian's suspicions, Artie was very much straight, but even he had to admit that Sebastian had a perfect body: his arms were muscular, thanks to his involvement in lacrosse, he had washboard abs that could rival Mike Chang's, and his legs were long and lean. Artie then looked back at his own lifeless legs, void of any tone or definition after years of not being used. Sure, his biceps were admirable, thanks to a decade of wheeling himself around, and, though he didn't have abs, his stomach wasn't terrible either. But his legs. There was a reason he didn't regularly show them off, and it was because just the sight of them made him terribly self-conscious.

Griffin seemed to read his mind.

"And I know it's not really my place to tell you how to feel, but don't be embarrassed. You don't have a reason to be," he said, placing a hand on Artie's shoulder. "It doesn't matter that you don't look like Sebastian or that sometimes you need one of us to carry you someplace. We don't mind. We're willing to do whatever it takes to make you comfortable because we want you around. That's what family's for, and Sebastian's family now too."

Artie's eyes welled up with tears that he hoped Griffin couldn't see through the darkness. Sure, life may suck for him a lot of the time, especially when it came to being spontaneous, but knowing that his family had his back made him feel really good.

Maybe this vacation wouldn't be so terrible after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much AGAIN to FF writer gigundoly for all of the help with ideas and quotes for this chapter! I should really just sign them on as a co/ghost writer. ;)
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

_**ARTIE** _

"You guys are doing this, right?" Artie asked one night at dinner a few days into the vacation. He leaned over to show something on his phone to the closest person at the table, which happened to be Ella. "You start in Arikok Park and you hike the whole north coast. It's supposed to be beautiful. Take a lot of pictures for me, okay?"

Harrison exchanged a troubled look with his future bride. It was a look Artie knew very well, and he braced himself, ready to counter the inevitable pushback. "Artie, your mother and I agreed to stick to activities that the whole family could enjoy while we're here. And there are plenty to choose from. We can skip hiking."

"Really, I don't mind," Artie insisted. The being left out part was much easier than knowing that the family would be making constant sacrifices that revolved around him being included. Artie looked to his mother. "Mom, please, tell him I don't mind."

"I have bad knees anyway," Harrison went on. "I don't like the idea of hiking very much."

Artie could sense that he was lying in an attempt to make Artie feel included, which, strangely, had him feeling worse than the thought of being left behind.

Artie stabbed the piece of meat he was eating in a particularly forceful manner and couldn't hide his annoyed expression. It was then that Sebastian, always ready to make things worse, leaned over to say something under his breath, making sure no one else heard.

"So, let me get this straight," he said. "My dad goes out of his way to plan things that accommodate your needs, and this is how you thank him? Nice manners, Hot Wheels."

When Artie didn't have an answer for that, Sebastian returned to eating dinner. Artie remained quiet from that point on, letting the rest of them plan out the next few days of wheelchair-friendly fun. He'd just smile and nod anytime his input was requested.

After dessert, however, Sebastian cornered him before they headed back to the rooms. He stepped in front of Artie, as the elevator opened, saying, "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Artie opened his mouth and then closed it again, as Ella stepped into the elevator with Griffin, Harrison, and their mother.

"We'll go on up," Ella said, letting the door close behind them.

"I guess so," Artie finally said, for Sebastian really hadn't given him much of a choice.

He pivoted his chair and wheeled back towards the lobby, Sebastian following behind. He took a seat on one of the big couches as Artie parked his chair alongside it.

"I was out of line earlier at dinner," Sebastian began. " I wanted to apologize. Things were finally getting good between us, and I don't want to mess that up. Also, my dad was totally making that up. About his knees, I mean."

"I knew it," Artie said, under his breath. "He'd never mentioned having bad knees before. I hate it when this happens."

"I'm guessing it's a common occurrence?"

Artie nodded.

"Like... like if you were, I don't know, allergic to water, would you just refuse to let your entire family go swimming?"

"If I were allergic to water, wouldn't I probably be dead?"

"Well, my weak analogy isn't really the point," Artie replied, before slightly changing the direction of the conversation. "Can you please talk your dad into taking my mom on a surprise hike in the morning? He'll listen to you. Tell him we kids want a day to ourselves. I know, for a fact, that she'd love exploring the island. We always used to hike as a family, and that would totally have been an activity that we would have enjoyed before."

Artie watched as Sebastian thought this idea over in his mind, looking a little uncomfortable when Artie mentioned the way their life had been before the accident. Artie had noticed this particular reaction several times before- he had grown so used to the way life was now that reminiscing on the past didn't even affect him, but for some unknown reason, it seemed to bother others.

Eventually, Sebastian nodded. Standing up, he clapped Artie on the shoulder, and the two of them headed back towards the elevators.

* * *

Artie was much fonder of the pool than the beach. There, he could roll right up to the edge of the pool on smooth pavement, ease himself into the water with no one's help, and soak up the feeling of free movement. Almost every single time it came to a vote, he voted pool and the three others- Ella, Griffin, and Sebastian- said beach. Artie seldom got his wish to skip the sand and waves for the day. It made sense, if you were able-bodied, because you could always visit pools in Ohio, but you certainly couldn't enjoy the beach. However, Artie was in for a surprise the morning after their post-dinner conversation, when Sebastian unexpectedly changed his vote to pool. As the tie-breaker, of course, Artie and Griffin squared up for a round of rock-paper-scissors. Artie's paper covered Griffin's rock, and they were off to the pool for the day, much to his delight.

"Did you do that for me?" Artie wanted to know, wheeling fast to catch up with Sebastian, on the way to the elevator. "Vote for the pool?"

Sebastian merely shrugged, his usual self-assured smirk plastered across his face. But as for Artie, he smirked, too, with the knowledge that, yes, Sebastian did that for him, probably as an extension of the peace offering from the night before.

Sebastian had listened to Artie and managed to convince his father to take Nancy hiking in the island's national park this morning, so the kids only needed to reserve four lounge chairs when they arrived at the pool. Each kid spread their towel out on a chair and slipped off their cover-ups before diving into the water.

Artie judged a few handstand contests between the other three (declaring Ella the winner each time), and they played a couple of rounds of Marco Polo. Now that there were four kids in the family, they could play a lot more games because they could make even teams of two. When somebody suggested a chicken fight, all four of them were quick to rise to the challenge. Ella climbed on top of Sebastian's shoulders as Artie did the same on Griffin's. Ella wrapped her ankles behind Sebastian's back as he held onto her knees. Since Artie couldn't hold on with his legs, Griffin grasped Artie's legs tightly, pinning his brother's feet close to his body with his elbows. After making sure they were in the middle of the pool and away from all of the edges, the fight between little sister and big brother began. Artie may not have all of his core strength, but he did still have a decent amount left, so he was able to put up a good fight before Ella knocked him over.

All four of the kids were giggling as Artie resurfaced and brushed his hair out of his face. Even though he knew that he didn't stand a chance against his little sister (who was a lot stronger than she looked!), he was happy to just be included in games like this.

"Hey, Art, do you need more sunscreen?" Griffin asked, noticing his brother's cheeks getting a little pink. As the eldest child, he felt obligated to take on the parental role; channeling his inner Nancy Abrams by reminding Artie as politely as he could that he should reapply.

Artie swam to the side of the pool and pulled himself up so that he was sitting on the edge. After making sure that his chair's brakes were still locked, Artie hoisted himself back up into it and rolled over to the family's poolside "spot".

Artie settled himself on the lounge chair and fished through his bag for the bottle of sunscreen. He squirted a generous amount onto his palm and applied it to his lower half first, before reaching his torso, arms, and face.

After reapplying everywhere, he decided to take a break from swimming for a little to relax in the shade. Artie put on his sunglasses, reached for the book he had brought along, and began reading as his siblings continued to splash around.

Only a little while later, the three of them were standing before him, soaking wet.

"Hey, Artie, we're gonna go down the waterslide! Wanna come?" Ella asked.

Artie didn't even hesitate before shaking his head, pretending not to notice the look of disappointment displayed on the faces in front of him.

"I'm pretty into my book right now," Artie lied. "Maybe later?"

That answer was good enough to satisfy Griffin, Sebastian, and Ella. Artie had a pit in his stomach as he watched them run off together in the direction of the big slide.

In reality, did Artie want to go with them? Absolutely. A slide that massive looked like it could give you a pretty good adrenaline rush. However, waiting in a line that stretched from the top of the slide and down a flight of stairs- making it impossible for his trusty chair to come along- was enough to deter him. Also, the idea of getting caught in some sort of whirlpool at the bottom where the slide spits you out into the main pool did not sound appealing. No thanks, hard pass.

For a brief moment, Artie reflected on the conversation he had had with Griffin the other night about how his family didn't mind making accommodations for him. But he really didn't _want_ them to have to make accommodations for him all the time. For once, he'd just like to be a normal eighteen-year-old kid enjoying a vacation with his family- and that's exactly what he was when he was swimming in the pool or lounging on the chair. While he knew that Griffin or Sebastian would gladly offer to piggy-back him while they waited in line, it didn't make the situation any less humiliating. After all of the years that had passed since his accident, one may think that Artie had grown used to people staring at him, but, to be perfectly honest, it still made him uncomfortable.

So he sat back and read his book.

After about thirty minutes or so, the other kids still hadn't returned, leading Artie to speculate that they had decided to go down the slide a couple more times. Fine by him. Artie set his book down beside him and decided to take a quick nap. He was exhausted from the pool time earlier and wanted to take a little bit of time to recharge before the others came back and would be ready for round two.

Sure enough, not forty-five minutes later, Ella, Griffin, and Sebastian had returned with lunches that they had gotten from the meal shack in their hands.

"Hey, Sleeping Beauty," Sebastian nudged Artie's thigh with his to-go box. When Artie didn't so much as flinch, Sebastian turned bright red, recognizing his mistake. He took a seat on the lounge chair next to Artie's before placing his hand on Artie's shoulder and shaking him lightly, causing him to stir awake.

"Hey, dude, we brought you some lunch," Sebastian said as Artie rubbed his eyes, accepting his meal. "I got you chicken fingers and fries. Same as me."

"Thanks," Artie replied, accepting the meal from Sebastian, as well as the cold bottle of water that Griffin was offering him. Artie munched on his chicken fingers, dipping them in ketchup, and offered his fries to Ella, hoping to limit his sodium intake for the day.

After finishing their lunches, the kids decided to lounge around for a little while longer, checking their phones and reading sections of the books they had brought along.

Later on, after disposing of their trash, the foursome returned to the water. The pool area was also a lot quieter and less crowded than the beach, so Artie was glad that he didn't have to worry about his chair being in anyone's way while he was swimming.

As Artie glided easily on his back, making long strokes with his arms, he realized that he was growing unexpectedly comfortable with having Sebastian around. Sure, he had uttered a few snide comments here and there, but it had been a while since Sebastian had tried to ruin Artie's life. Naturally, Sebastian must have been thinking it was time to put all of this to an end. It was the only thing that could've explained what he was currently doing.

"Aren't you going to swim?" Artie asked as he paddled over to where Sebastian sat, legs dangling into the water, busy typing away on his phone. Artie was able to ease himself up onto the edge of the pool beside him, unnoticed, and he craned his neck to see what Sebastian was doing.

"Hey!" Sebastian protested. "S'cuse me, little mermaid, can you go back to singing about how the seaweed is always greener in somebody else's lake and let me finish my text?"

"I'm not the one named after a cartoon crab," Artie shot back. "I was just wondering what text could be more important than this awesome pool?"

"Well, if you must know, I'm trying to see if Tina Hoe-in-Training has anything on her schedule that conflicts with the wedding," Sebastian said, angling his body away. "Now, please, do you mind? This is private. HEY!"

Artie had made a grab for the phone just then, and it slipped out of Sebastian's grip, plunging straight into the waters below.

* * *

_**SEBASTIAN** _

"Are you insane?" he screeched, pushing Artie into the pool. Maybe they were just fighting too much like brothers, or maybe Sebastian just didn't remember, with the chair sitting off to the side, that Artie only had half a functioning body. In retrospect, holding him underwater was a slight overreaction to the offense.

"Get off him!" Griffin was involved now, pulling Sebastian off of Artie. Artie resurfaced, coughing and sputtering as he frantically grabbed for the edge of the pool. Meanwhile, Ella, being the sensible one that she was, had retrieved the phone from the bottom of the pool.

"You could probably just put it in rice and it'll be fine," Ella said, paddling over to the side and depositing it on the pavement. "Artie, are you okay?"

Artie nodded, still coughing, as he gripped the pool's edge, too weak to pull himself back up just yet.

"Sebastian, he can't fight back like you can!" Griffin was now bright red, and it had nothing to do with him being a little sunburned. "What were you even thinking, doing that?"

Sebastian had drawn the stares of pretty much everyone in the pool that day. Embarrassed and also pretty annoyed by the way Ella and Griffin had ganged up on him, he swiped his phone off the pavement, grabbed his towel and sandals, and hastily stomped off. He wasn't in the mood for family pool time anymore.

Tears pricked his eyes and, humiliated to be crying and not really even understanding why, he waited until he could get himself an empty elevator, which he hoped would make it all the way to their floor without stopping.

He took a shower, just to give himself a chance to collect his thoughts. As he was finishing up and changing into dry clothes, there was a small knock at the door. It couldn't be housekeeping since they'd already come. Sebastian opened the door and was surprised to see Artie. He had a bag of rice with him.

"Sorry, I didn't have a key," he said. "This stupid bag of rice cost like four dollars in the gift shop, can you believe that? Anyway, uh, can- can I come in?"

Sebastian shrugged and stepped back to allow him entry. "It's your room too, it's not like I paid for it," he said, turning his back to Artie and striding across the room to sit down on the bed they'd been sharing for the last couple of nights. "Do what you want."

"Griffin gets needlessly overprotective of me sometimes," Artie began, as he paused and stooped down to pick up the plastic bucket that Ella had brought along for catching crabs. "I reminded him, though, that you're our brother too now, and that I shouldn't have messed up your phone. I was in the wrong. Can I see it?" As he noticed Sebastian's expression, he explained. "Not to look at your texts or anything, just to put it in this rice."

Artie wedged the bucket in between his knees, opened the bag of rice, and poured the rice into the bucket as Sebastian reluctantly handed over his phone.

"I don't know how to be anyone's brother," Sebastian blurted out, feeling awkward about what he was going to say but figuring he might as well say it. "And it doesn't look like you guys need me. You're already a complete set."

Artie looked uncomfortable now too.

"I've been reluctant to share them," he admitted. "Because we _were_ a complete set. Now, I see them with you and I feel like you're sort of... taking my place. Especially when you're out there, doing all the stuff I can't do with them. Catching crabs and going down waterslides, I mean."

Sebastian shook his head.

"Nobody could take your place, Artie," he said. "It's obvious they're always gonna prefer you to me anyway."

"No, we're not," said a voice belonging to Griffin, who had entered the room using his key. "And also, I was wrong about something earlier. Artie _can_ fight back. Maybe with the exception of when someone's holding him underwater, anyway. I forget that Artie's different, Ella does, and now you do too. It means you know what it means to be his brother. So, all things considered, that's a good start."

Ella sat down by Sebastian and tucked her head on his shoulder. "Just saying, but this would have been a heck of a lot easier if I'd gotten a sister instead of another brother."

To which Artie, not missing a beat, replied: "You did, El."

The siblings erupted into a fit of giggles as Sebastian playfully shoved Artie's shoulder, a lot lighter this time than he had the time before.

Artie, ever the peacemaker, swiftly changed the subject.

"Sooo, now that this is resolved, anyone wanna go on the waterslide?"

His suggestion was met with shocked faces from all three of his siblings. None of them had expected him to actually follow up on his promise to join them on the slide later in the day.

"Are you serious? You really wanna go?" Sebastian asked, his voice hopeful. He didn't care that he had already showered and changed out of his swimsuit. He'd get changed again in a heartbeat.

"Well, yeah. I told you I would, didn't I? I figure if you carry me in line, and Griffin catches me at the bottom, then it should be fun, right?"

The three siblings nodded eagerly. Ella gave Artie a hug, Griffin scruffed his hair, and Sebastian jumped up to head to the bathroom to change back into his wet swimsuit.

As the days went by, Sebastian was beginning to feel more and more welcomed by the Abrams kids. He was already picking up on what it meant to have siblings and be a sibling, and, with their guidance, he was sure he would learn the ropes in no time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, many thanks are owed to FF writer gigundoly for all of the help with ideas and quotes for this chapter! The fandom's best co/ghost writer. ;)
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

_**SEBASTIAN** _

Before anyone knew it, June was here and Harrison and Nancy's wedding day had arrived. It was unusually hot for this time of year in northwest Ohio, so everyone was happy that the wedding and reception were taking place indoors.

As promised, Sebastian was taking Ella as his "date" for the wedding, and Griffin's girlfriend from Ohio State had driven up from her home in Columbus to be his. This only left Artie.

Over the last several months, Sebastian had worked diligently to find someone to set his soon-to-be brother up with for the night. Knowing that the boy still had feelings for his former flame, Tina the Social Stutterfly, she was first in line for Sebastian's attempt at match-making. He may or may not have blackmailed Finn Hudson for Tina's cell phone number, threatening that he would post some embarrassing photoshopped pictures of him online if he didn't give him what he wanted. Finn was quick to oblige, making actually getting Tina's number the easy part. He had presumed that the feelings between T-T-T-Tina and Artie were mutual- needless to say, he was not expecting the pushback that he received. Much to Sebastian's dismay, Tina was quick to turn down the offer.

**S: Greetings from your favorite Warbler.**

**T: Nice try, but I already have Trent's number saved… Now, who could this possibly be? Sebastian?**

**S: Lucky guess.**

**T: Are you forgetting that you have a Lima area code now?**

**S: Touché.**

**T: I don't think you'd be texting me unless you wanted something, so what is it?**

**S: Fine, I'll just get right down to the point. I want you to be Artie's date for the wedding.**

**T: You know I have a boyfriend, right? Who will also be in attendance at said wedding?**

**S: Just hear me out, Tina Cohen-Crazy!**

**T: Does Artie know you're up to this?**

**T: Hello?**

**T: I guess that's my answer.**

**S: Ugh. Sorry. To answer your question, no, Artie did not have any part in this. And when he found out, he promptly tossed my phone into the pool, hence my late response. The rice finally did its job and now I'm just seeing these messages.**

**T: Whatever. I love Artie. He's my best friend. But Mike Chang is my soulmate. It'd be weird if I ditched him to go to the wedding with Artie. So, for that reason, my answer is no.**

**S: You're the worst.**

**T: Why don't you stop playing matchmaker?! Artie's more than capable of finding his own date, believe me.**

Following that disaster and ignoring Tina's advice, Sebastian moved on to the next names on his list. He didn't really want to cross Santana by asking Artie's other ex, Brittany, to be his date, so she was off-limits from the get-go. Sebastian wasn't even going to think about putting Artie through an entire night with Rachel Berry- he wasn't _that_ mean. He thought about calling up Sugar with the sugar daddy, but rumor has it she's been all over the Irish kid ever since he told her he was getting deported. Toyota Camry wasn't really Artie's type, so that left Sebastian with one option left: Quinn, the manic depressive wannabe Prom Queen.

After blackmailing Finn again, Sebastian had gotten a hold of her number, and to his surprise, the former head cheerleader agreed to be Artie's date almost instantly. Sebastian was pleased with himself and his abilities to find his brother someone attractive, slightly out of Artie's league, and pretty different from his past lovers. He had gone ahead and told Artie his news, and when his words finally sank in, Artie almost passed out on the spot.

"Quinn?! Quinn Fabray?!" Artie had asked, shaking his head in disbelief. "I'll be the first to admit that I was not crazy about the idea of you setting me up, but you may just be the world's best wingman for this one, dude. Thanks."

Since this was both Harrison and Nancy's second marriages, they weren't inviting _too_ many guests- mostly just family, a few friends, and some of their coworkers. The bride's wedding party was made up of her children and members of the New Directions, and the groom's wedding party included his son and The Warblers. From what Sebastian had heard from Artie, today's events were going to be very similar to the wedding of Kurt's dad to Finn's mom almost two years earlier. Nancy had been in attendance at the wedding and she had liked the upbeat energy of the ceremony, as well as the role that the Glee Club had played.

Now, on the morning of the wedding, the hustle and bustle of excited teenagers filled the air. The New Directions boys were outfitted in navy blue suits and the girls in crimson red dresses- all to match the Dalton Academy uniforms that The Warblers would be wearing. The wedding was taking place at the Lima Marriott Hotel and Event Space since the hotel had two ballrooms- one for the ceremony, and the other for the reception.

Despite the fact that the New Directions and The Warblers had separate dressing rooms to get ready prior to the wedding, members of the groups came and went freely between them, both parties excited about the newly established truce between the two teams. Immediately after he had gotten himself ready, Sebastian had sauntered next door, knowing that the New Directions could be kind of a rag-tag bunch of misfits and not wanting them to look like hot messes for the ceremony. To his surprise, though, they appeared to clean up nicely.

"Take my advice and lose the glasses, would you?" Sebastian said, coming up from behind Artie, who was seated in front of a mirror. Artie's face lit up at the sight of Sebastian, something he never expected to happen.

"I'll be as blind as a bat," Artie replied.

"Got your contacts on you?"

"Well, yes, but-"

"Great. Wear 'em. You'll thank me later," Sebastian advised with a wink. "And _please_ , for the love of God, do something with your hair. You've outgrown the swoop bang."

Artie pouted, and before he could open his mouth to reason with him, his date for the day came to his defense.

" _I_ think he looks cute either way," Quinn Fabray said, appearing next to Sebastian as they stood behind Artie, putting her hands on his shoulders. Artie grinned into the mirror, back at the girl with the shoulder-length blonde hair that was being held away from her face by a girly hair bow. As she knelt down beside Artie to straighten his tie, Sebastian couldn't help but give himself a pat on the back for setting up this pairing. Who knows, maybe being each other's platonic wedding dates will lead to something bigger in the future.

Unlucky for Artie, Kurt and Sebastian seemed to have the same idea.

"Artie, your hair needs a little volume for the special occasion," Kurt said, walking over with some hair gel in his palm. "You can thank me later."

Before Artie had a chance to protest, Kurt was running his fingers through his brown hair, successfully achieving a more "grown-up" look. Sebastian never thought that there would be a day where he and Kurt would agree on something, but there's a first for everything.

"I'll take those," Sebastian told Artie, swiftly swiping the black rectangular-framed glasses off of his face and holding out his hand. "Contacts?"

"Backpack," Artie replied simply as he sighed and gestured over his shoulder with his thumb.

Sebastian unzipped the bag that was hanging from the handles of his chair and fished through it for the glasses case and package of contacts. As he was doing so, he couldn't help but think of how far they'd come since they first became family- Sebastian knew that only a couple of months ago, Artie would have never let him rifle through the bag that contained his medications, catheters, and other private supplies. Now, they were about to become brothers and had nothing to hide from one another.

Sebastian retrieved what he was looking for and handed the contact lenses to Artie before zipping the backpack back up. As Artie put in the contacts, Sebastian unhooked the bag from the back of his chair, knowing that he wouldn't be needing it for the ceremony, and set somewhere where Artie could access it easily when necessary.

"Five minutes!" Griffin reported, sticking his head in the doorway and causing several of the girls to squeal with delight. Sebastian clapped Artie's shoulder as he turned to leave.

"Alright, as much fun as you public school kids are, I'm gonna return to my people now. See you when we're in there?"

Artie nodded as a small, anticipatory smile appeared on his face.

With that, Sebastian returned to the dressing room next door where The Warblers had already begun doing some vocal warmups. When the time came, the two show choirs met in the hallway behind the closed doors of the ballroom.

On their cue, The Warblers began providing the vocal backups a cappella as the New Directions began singing Lady Gaga's "You And I". The guests' heads turned as Sebastian and Artie sang solo parts while leading the groups down the aisle in a fun little song and dance number. When all of the performers had filed in and taken their spots on either side of the altar, Sebastian returned to the entrance of the room and took his father's arm as the guests let out a collective "awww!". Immediately following Harrison and Sebastian, Griffin and Ella appeared on either side of Nancy, ready to walk their mother down the aisle. Sebastian noticed tears brimming in Artie's eyes as he smiled, taking in how beautiful and happy his mother looked.

When the song was finished, all of the guests stood and clapped as the minister got the ceremony started. He said all of the boring stuff that they always say at weddings, and Sebastian had to continuously pinch himself to avoid falling asleep.

"And now, I believe that the bride and groom have written some vows that they would like to exchange in front of you all, their closest friends and family, today," he said eventually.

Harrison cleared his throat.

"Bear with me everyone- writing isn't really my strong suit. With my chosen profession, you'd think I'd be good at this type of thing," he said as those in attendance chuckled. "Well, here goes nothing. Nancy, from the moment I laid eyes on you from across the office, I knew you were special. You carried yourself with an admirable amount of grace, class, and charm. Your quick-witted humor and endless knowledge are electric, and after our first conversation, I knew that I was falling in love. Every good quality you possess you have passed down to your three amazing kids- Griffin, Artie, and Ella- who I will gladly embrace as my own for the rest of my life."

Artie and his siblings smiled at one another, blushing at the compliment.

"I have now been lucky enough to fall in love three times in my life: when I met my late first wife Sylvie, the day Sebastian was born, and the day that I met you. Even though our paths crossed later in life… it doesn't make our love any less true or real. I love you, Nance, and I promise to keep loving you for the rest of time."

As his father finished the vows to his bride, Sebastian couldn't help but smile. It warmed his heart to see his father so happy after everything that they had been through together.

"That's going to be a tough act to follow, but I'll do my very best," Nancy warned. "I'll be the first to admit that I am a tough shell to crack, but once you break down my walls, you're in for life. Initially, I am known to come off as a little standoff-ish or intimidating, but I'm lucky that you are as persistent as you are, Harrison Smythe. You never gave up on trying to win me over, and it ended up just being the greatest thing to happen to me."

Ever the comedian, Griffin made a spectacle of himself as he coughed exaggeratedly, reminding her who was beside her.

"Since these guys were born, I mean," Nancy was quick to add, receiving soft laughter from the guests. "During our engagement, you were quick to pack up everything and move an hour away, no discussion necessary. I know that you would do anything for me or any of these three, and I am so excited to spend forever with you."

The minister led Nancy and Harrison in saying their "I Do's" and exchanging rings.

"Now, by the power vested in me by the state of Ohio, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride!"

The guests and Glee kids cheered as they kissed. Sebastian caught Artie's eye and pretended to gag, causing Artie to cover his mouth and stifle a laugh.

Along with the parents committing to one another for eternity, the kids kind of had too- they vowed to stick by each other until forever, blood-related or not, and that was a bond that they would share for life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're all just going to pretend that Shelby and Will didn't sing "You And I" in 3x06, okay? I was at a loss for a fun, pop love song for The Warblers and New Directions to perform, and that one just happened to be stuck in my head!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

_**ARTIE** _

Directly following the ceremony, the guests moved into the other ballroom to begin consuming hors d'oeuvres and beverages as the newly-conjoined Abrams-Smythe family headed outside into the hotel's courtyard garden with the photographer to begin taking some photos.

Even though the kids are older, there are still four of them, making it difficult to take a family shot where everyone is smiling at the camera.

"Ah! Stop!" Artie shrieked as he did the best he could to duck away from Sebastian, who was trying to give him a wet willy.

"Boys! The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can all head back inside to the air conditioning and after party," Nancy scolded them as Sebastian cackled at Artie's reaction.

Both boys listened to Artie's mom, cooperating for several more snapshots.

"Alright, now let's get a picture of the happy couple kissing with their kids surrounding them!" The photographer suggested.

Sebastian and Artie shared a confused glance at the photographer's strange idea for a shot. Being the fun-loving young adults that they are, all four kids decided to turn this into an opportunity for a funny photo. Without warning Artie about what he was about to do, Sebastian leapt into his step-brother's lap, causing Artie to let out an "oof!" when he plopped down. Griffin stuck his tongue out at the camera and crossed his eyes. Seeing what her big brothers were doing, Ella formed peace signs with both of her hands and placed them behind Artie and Sebastian's heads, making the illusion of bunny ears. The flash went off as the photographer snapped the comical photo. That one would be framed above the mantle for sure!

"All set! You are free to go enjoy the reception!" The photographer released his subjects.

"Wheel me inside, my prince!" Sebastian said dramatically, refusing to get up from Artie's lap once the photo op was complete.

Artie rolled his eyes. It was nearly ninety-five degrees out, and he was sweating in his suit jacket. Having a one-hundred-and-fifty pound seventeen-year-old boy on top of him wasn't really helping with the situation, especially because he knew that his lower half wouldn't sweat to regulate his body temperature. He knew better than to argue with Sebastian, though.

"If I'm your prince, does that make you my princess?" Artie joked as he gave in and pushed himself and Sebastian fifty yards back into the hotel.

Immediately upon arriving in the second ballroom, Artie heard a familiar voice calling out his name.

"Artie Man!"

Artie spun himself around, forced to use more effort than usual due to the fact that Sebastian was still seated in his lap.

"Dad!"

Sebastian immediately got up and stood awkwardly beside Artie with a hand placed on his chair's handle as he waited for an introduction.

The father and son duo greeted each other with a hug.

"Hey, Bud! You were amazing when you sang during the ceremony! Your friends too! I can see why you all do so well at your competitions!" Art praised his son.

Since he lived a couple of hours away and had a very time consuming job, Art wasn't always able to make it to watch the New Directions compete. Whenever he did get the chance to see them perform, he couldn't help but be blown away by their talent.

"Thanks," Artie grinned before turning to Sebastian. "Seb, this is my dad, Art. Dad, this is Harrison's son Sebastian."

"Hi, it's nice to finally meet you," Sebastian said, shaking Art's hand. "Artie doesn't shut up about you."

"Likewise," Art laughed, causing Artie to blush.

They talked for a few minutes more before Quinn appeared at Artie's side, leaning over to whisper in his ear, asking if he wanted to go dance with her. Artie's face lit up and he eagerly nodded before addressing his father.

"Later, Dad!" he called over his shoulder as Quinn took him by the hand and led him over towards where their friends were already tearing up the dance floor.

Sebastian joined his brother Warblers on the stage, as they were scheduled to provide the music for the first half of the night. Quinn and Artie danced for what felt like hours, continuously laughing and smiling together. Artie could not believe that Sebastian's (initially unwanted) matchmaking service had led to something so great. Even their friends were taking note of the newly set-up couple, noticing that this had to have been the happiest any of them had seen Quinn all year.

Just before dinner, Sebastian and his teammates exited the stage, allowing the part-time DJ to queue up the tunes until after the meal when the New Directions would be taking over.

The guests all took their deliberately assigned seats as they waited for the waiters to bring their food over to them. The large main table in the center of the room was occupied by the happy couple, as well as their children and their children's dates: Sebastian, Ella, Artie, Quinn, Griffin, and Griffin's girlfriend, Hadley.

The newly united family laughed together throughout the meal, and Artie kept glancing over at Quinn beside him. He still could not believe that she had agreed to be his date in the first place, let alone the fact that it appeared she was having a good time chatting it up with himself and Ella, despite being seated away from their other friends.

As the dinner went on, some of Harrison and Nancy's friends from work decided to share some fun memories they had of the couple and make toasts to their relationship. Everyone was surprised, however, when Sebastian stood up himself and reached for the microphone.

"Uh, hi," Sebastian said into the microphone, sounding a little more nervous than anybody expected him to be. "For those in attendance that I haven't met before, I'm Sebastian Smythe, Harrison's son."

Sebastian cleared his throat before speaking again.

"To start, I want to say a huge congratulations to my dad and Nancy. I'm glad you found one another and that you're happy, but, sorry to disappoint you both, the person I want to raise a toast to tonight is Artie."

All eyes turned to Artie who sat at the table with his mouth hanging open. His face flushed as he felt everybody staring at him. Quinn smiled and snuck her hand in his under the table as Sebastian pulled a notecard out of his uniform blazer's interior pocket.

"As many of you know, because Artie and I are on rival show choir teams, we didn't start off on the best of terms. We fought like cats and dogs constantly- so much so that we could hardly be in the same room as one another without all hell breaking loose," Sebastian said, eliciting a laugh from the audience. "One misdirected slushie facial and phone-into-pool situation later, I can now say that Artie is somebody who will be by my side until the end of time."

A couple of guests let out an "Awww" at that before Sebastian continued.

"Artie and I's brotherly relationship did not come easily, and it took a lot of work on both sides to get to the point we are at today. I've been an only child my entire life, and I always prioritized my own feelings over those of others. Going from having no siblings to three overnight would be a hard adjustment for anybody, and I was no exception," Sebastian shared. "If you ask him, he will be quick to tell you that it took a lot of trial and error- on my part, especially- but I believe that the strong relationship that Artie and I have since curated was built on mutual respect for one another."

"I respect the hell out of him, not just because he's quite easily the funniest, smartest, and kindest person I know- ha! I'm embarrassing him," Sebastian paused mid-sentence to laugh as Artie hung his head, once again attempting to hide from all of the attention. "I don't just respect Artie because of all of those things, but because of the way he adapts to a world that wasn't made for him. I've never met somebody so positive and easygoing as he is every day, despite everything life throws at him."

Turning his attention directly to Artie, he finished off his toast.

"Artie, you've taught me how to be a brother and you've made me a better, more open-minded person in the few months that we've known each other, and I promise to have your back forever. I love you, man."

Artie's face was still flushed and his eyes welled up with tears. Nobody had ever said such nice things about him before- at least, not in front of a group of people like this. He was shocked and moved and touched beyond belief by Sebastian's words.

Before sitting back down in his seat, Sebastian walked around to the other side of the table and bent down to hug his step-brother.

"Thank you," was all Artie could muster to whisper in his ear as they embraced. "I love you too."

"I meant it. All of it," Sebastian nodded, locking eyes with the smaller boy.

Straightening back up, Sebastian once again raised the microphone to his mouth.

"And now, if you'll turn your direction to the dance floor, the newlyweds will be having their first dance," Sebastian announced. "The music will be performed by- if you know me, then you know how hard this is for me to say- the 2012 Show Choir National Champions, the McKinley High School New Directions!"

The guests laughed again as the New Directions headed towards the stage (which had a convenient ramp in place for Artie and Watson to use, respectively). Nancy and Harrison graced the dance floor as the team sang Kelly Clarkson's "A Moment Like This".

After the dance was complete, the New Directions took turns singing some more slow songs for the guests to dance to, and- much to Artie's surprise- Quinn was eager for her chance to slow dance with her date. She once again led him onto the dance floor as the girls formerly known as The Troubletones began singing their own song.

Artie had been excited- yet also incredibly nervous- when Sebastian had first told him about the wedding date that he'd arranged for him. His reasons for being excited were obvious- this was Quinn, one of the few people who even knew and remembered him from his days before the chair. And she'd always had a casual way of acknowledging him with respect that he'd appreciated, even if they weren't all that close.

And speaking of closeness, this was the part that made him nervous. There were two options for slow dancing with Artie. The first was the girl sitting in his lap- the very intimate and close option. The second was completely the opposite; the kind of awkward dancing he'd do in Glee Club when it came down to exactly the same number of guys as girls, and he didn't have an excuse to roll himself into the wings for a few minutes. Whereas the first option was almost too close for comfort, the second was so distant that it hardly felt like he was dancing with another person.

Quinn didn't hesitate to sit in his lap, although she did make some kind of silly comment about how she hoped she wasn't too heavy. Artie quickly assured her that she wasn't, and the rest of their time dancing was pretty uneventful, and, surprisingly, quite comfortable. Quinn wrapped her arms around Artie's neck as he slowly rolled them back and forth.

Sebastian danced by a few times, deliberately spinning Ella or doing something to draw attention to himself and get either Artie or Quinn to look his way. Sebastian winked when Artie glanced away from Quinn's beautiful green eyes long enough to notice his less-than-subtle way of spying on them.

After he'd done it a few times, Quinn laughed and asked Artie, "Did you want to murder him when you found out he was fixing you up for the wedding?"

"Yeah," Artie admitted, with a laugh. "I, um, kind of made him drop his phone in a pool. But, well, then he told me _you_ were coming as my date and that changed things. He redeemed himself."

That made Quinn blush. Artie couldn't believe it. _He_ had made _Quinn Fabray_ blush.

"So, how was that trip anyway?" she asked him. "Is it weird adding a stepbrother to the family? I ask, because my mom just started seeing someone recently, and I think he has kids."

"Well, I'm pretty sure that you and your mom's boyfriend's kids aren't already sworn enemies going into the arrangement," Artie joked, causing a small smile to appear on Quinn's face. "In all seriousness, it really sucked in the beginning. We fought a lot, and, looking back on it, keeping everything a 'secret' was definitely a bad call. But once we started actually hanging out and getting to know one another, it wasn't so bad. He turned out to actually be sort of cool."

As the slower songs died down, Artie and Quinn decided to take a break from dancing, and wandered over to the bar to get themselves each a Shirley Temple ("With extra cherries!" Quinn had insisted). As they waited in line, Artie felt a light tap on his shoulder. Glancing behind him, he was met with none other than Watson the Wheelchair Warbler.

"Hey, Watson! What's up? I haven't seen you in a while," Artie greeted him, as the boys dapped up.

"Nothing, I just wanted to say a quick hi, and thank you," Watson replied, a sincere smile on his face.

Artie cocked his head to the side like a confused puppy.

"Thank you? For what?"

"I know you probably played some sort of role in getting me a spot on The Warblers," Watson explained.

Artie shrugged.

"Not really," he lied a bit. "Your voice is what got you a spot on the team, I just reminded Sebastian to look past the chair. You're really talented, Watson. Don't sell yourself short."

Watson smiled and nodded. Artie had kind of been a mentor of sorts to him, and he was always grateful for the older boy's encouragement and advice.

The boys said their goodbyes as Quinn returned with their Shirley Temples. The two friends headed over to the table they had occupied earlier and sat down. They both sipped on their drinks as they watched their friends continue to dance.

Eventually, it appeared as though Sebastian had ditched Ella and come to check on his matchmaking clients.

"So how are we doing this evening, lovebirds?" He asked with a cocky smirk on his face.

Before Artie could get the chance to roll his eyes and insist that they were _just_ friends, Quinn spoke up for them both.

"It's been a lovely day so far, Sebastian. Thank you, again, for setting us up," the blonde girl replied, once again slipping her hand into Artie's, however this time, it was on top of the table in full view of Sebastian and everyone.

"Well that's one pairing we haven't explored yet in Glee Club," Puck commented as he walked by, noticing his friends' clasped hands and that they were sitting a little closer to one another than normal.

"Oh, hey, man," Puck turned to Sebastian, placing a hand on his shoulder. "All that stuff that you said about my guy Artie earlier… That was really nice. And I'm sorry for saying that you had a punchable face."

Artie giggled, as Sebastian furrowed his brows in confusion.

"Uh… I accept your apology? But you didn't say that."

"He did," Artie nodded, remembering the conversation he and Puck had had alone while The Warblers were performing at Regionals. "Just not to your face."

Puck shrugged and walked towards the bar, fake I.D. in hand, as Sebastian returned to his Warbler buddies, leaving Quinn and Artie alone at the table.

"I agree with Puck," Quinn said, resting her elbow on the table and putting her head in her hand. "What Sebastian said about you was really sweet."

Artie blushed. He didn't know what to say, but lucky for him, Quinn still had more on her mind.

"It made me open my eyes to what had been in front of me all these years," she said. "I'm done wasting my time with the airhead Lima Loser jocks. It's just a shame that it's taken me until senior year to realize."

"Realize what?"

Quinn's laugh was like music to Artie's ears.

"That who I want to be with is right in front of me. You."

She giggled again at the look of shock that appeared on his face. He had not been expecting this.

"He was right. You're witty, and charming, and so smart. Despite every rough patch I've ever gone through, you've always been nothing but a good friend to me. I appreciate you, Artie. More than you know."

A moment later, she leaned over and planted a soft kiss on his lips, his eyes widening with surprise again.

"I'm glad Sebastian set us up tonight. I like spending time with you," Quinn said, squeezing Artie's hand.

Artie smiled back, his big white teeth and dimples showing. He was at a loss for words, but he knew that he owed his step-brother big time for this setup.

Artie couldn't help but think back to a few months ago when he had found out that Sebastian was going to be a part of his family. He had spent so long being angry and anxious and bothered… Now he knows that Sebastian is a great kid who was going through his own battles. He just needed somebody to come in and figure him out, and Artie was glad to be that person.

Over the last few months, he had grown to consider Sebastian his real sibling. He saw him as an equal to Griffin and Ella- somebody who would be there to support and protect him through it all, even if they had become family later in life. Artie was grateful for the support and encouragement that Sebastian was giving him now and knew that he would be there for him for decades to come.

"I like spending time with you, too," Artie eventually replied, leaning into another kiss.

_**THE END** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this story! It's one of my favorites I've written for sure. This is the longest story I've ever written, and I had a ton of fun writing it! I think Sebastian and Artie are two really underrated and interesting characters, so I had a lot of fun writing for them.
> 
> Special thanks going out to gigundoly for her continued reviews, suggestions, and dialogue excerpts throughout the writing process of this story! I appreciate you more than you know!
> 
> Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, and messages you have after reading on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you so much for reading and I hope you liked reading this as much as I loved writing it!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you are all enjoying this story so far! Please leave me any reviews, thoughts, messages, and suggestions you have on this story! Reading your feedback really motivates me to continue writing! Thank you!
> 
> xoxo QuinnAbrams


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